


With Her Angel's Wings

by Ashirya



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Blood, Crying, Death, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Established Relationship, F/F, Fluff, Guilt, Injury, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Suggestive Themes, Survivor Guilt, Violence, Worry
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-03
Updated: 2018-02-28
Packaged: 2019-02-27 18:21:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 29,056
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13253994
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ashirya/pseuds/Ashirya
Summary: Two years have passed since Overwatch was restarted with Winston at the helm. Hana and Angela have been in a relationship for some time, things couldn't be looking any brighter for their future together.However, sinister forces are plotting against Overwatch and its allies. How will this affect Hana, as she desperately tries to protect her angel? And how will Angela handle the misfortune that awaits her?(Additional Tags will be added as necessary)





	1. A Helping Hand

**Author's Note:**

> I present to you, my first attempt at writing anything. It's a HanaMercy fic, set roughly a year or so after the start of their relationship. I have the basic outline for the story done, but updates will likely be slow, as work keeps me rather busy. That being said, I've never attempted anything like this before, so it will likely be terrible and full of plot holes, but I hope you enjoy it anyway.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Roughly two years after Hana joined the newly reformed Overwatch, Angela leaves for a seemingly simple mission, leaving her beloved Hana back at the main facility in Gibraltar. Hana worries something awful will happen if she's not there to defend her angel.

_Wednesday, September 21, 2078_

_0812 hours_

_Watchpoint Gibraltar_

 

    Sunlight slowly began to peak through the curtained window, tickling at Hana’s eyes from beneath the mess of brown hair early that morning. Blinking slowly at the unwelcome intrusion, Hana chanced a glance at the digital clock on the nightstand, her bleary eyes taking a moment to adjust themselves to wakefulness. _Damn,_ she thought sleepily. _Is it morning already?_ Never mind she should be used to getting up early these past two years in the reformed Overwatch, she was still a habitual night owl, never getting to bed on time. But today was her day off, no need to rush out of bed today.

    Hana rolled over, away from the morning’s invasive light, and found herself face to face with the still sleeping woman she shared this bed with. With one hand, Hana brushed the blonde hair from Angela’s face, gently caressing her brow. Letting her fingers trail down the Swiss woman’s cheek, Hana felt the familiar warmth in her heart that comes to her every time she gazes at the angel beside her. Sighing contentedly, Hana pulled herself closer to Angela, carefully cuddling the doctor’s face to her chest, her own face buried in the sweet smelling mess of sleep-mussed hair.

    With her own eyes closed, Hana listened to Angela’s deep, steady breathing, felt her strong heartbeat. For a moment, she lost track of time as she held her sleeping angel, the world’s beacon of hope for the injured and sick. The beloved medical sorceress, Doctor Angela Ziegler. She was still every bit the hero the world knew her as, the hero Hana herself had grown up hearing about. The same doctor who worried endlessly about her comrades' health and safety, but at the same time tended to neglect herself, often working for days without food or sleep if lives were at stake. _She really gives too much of herself,_ Hana thought. Angela always put everyone else before herself. But that is who **_Mercy_** is, and the world still needed her.

    In moments like this, she was merely Angela, and Hana treasured those moments; when she could hold her close, selfishly keeping the angel all to herself. The younger woman giggled to herself, _At least she doesn’t forget to eat all the time anymore, I’ve seen to that!_

    Angela stirred a little under Hana’s embrace, cracking open a blurred blue eye. A sleepy groan from the back of her throat accompanied a stretch of her legs and back, but her arms wrapped themselves around Hana’s waist, squeezing her close, much to the tiny gamer’s amusement.

    “Good morning, Angie.” Hana chirped softly.

    “Mmmmm… ’ood… ’orning… Hana…” The sleepy blonde yawned into Hana’s chest, her breath warm on her bare skin. “What… time is it?” The sound of her voice, thick with sleep, and her lovely Swiss accent can still cause Hana’s heart to flutter.

    Hana took a quick glance over her shoulder before responding, “A bit after eight, sleepyhead. You’d better get going or you’ll be late for the briefing.” Hana giggled a little at the adorably sleepy look on Angela’s face as she sat up in their shared bed, rubbing at her eyes with the heel of one hand. Hana might not like waking up in the morning, but that was nothing compared to how poorly the good doctor fared at the start of the day, at least until she got some coffee.

    Covering another yawn with her hand, Angela glanced around their bedroom, until her gaze settled down on the tiny gamer. A soft smile curved her lips, a smile for Hana alone, full of warmth and quiet joy.

    “And what is in store for you today, liebling? Doesn’t Winston have you scheduled to test a new missile targeting system or something?” Angela inquired as she reached out to carefully brush a few stray strands of Hana’s hair behind her ear.

    “Nah, Athena’s initial tests showed some errors. They’ve got a whole lot more work to do before it’ll be ready for any real testing. Means I'm grounded until they fix the bugs.” Hana grinned smugly, happy to finally have a day off for a change.

    “Well, knowing you, I assume that means either you’re going to ‘pwn some noobs’, or perhaps marathon some new show that’s caught your interest?”

    “Hadn’t thought much about it actually,” Hana sat up herself, pondering what she should do with her unexpected free time.

    “Well, I hope you find something enjoyable to do with your day.”

    “Says the woman who spent _all_ yesterday cooped up in her lab instead of watching that kick-ass new movie with me,” Hana complained, still a little annoyed at being neglected the previous evening.

    A guilty look settled on Angela’s face, her head lowering a little in shame, “I’m sorry, Hana. The experiment I was working on reached a time critical phase, had I left it, weeks of work would have been lost.”

    Hana feigned an expression of mock hurt, crossing her arms over her chest. “So you work is more important than your girlfriend, huh,” she pouted dramatically.

    Chuckling at her little bunny’s antics, Angela cupped Hana’s cheek in one hand, thumb gently stroking over where her pink whiskers would be. “I promise I’ll make it up to you when I return from today’s mission, my love.”

    Hana grabbed Angela by the shoulders to pull her in and down to kiss her right on the lips. It was warm, soft, and loving, everything Hana could want. Eventually, Hana pulled back ever so slightly, a huge grin plastered on her face.

    “You’re not gonna make anything up to me if you don’t get your butt moving, Angie.” Pointing to the clock over her shoulder, she watches as Angela’s face shifts from blissful sleepy happiness to mild bewilderment, and finally to annoyance as she realized the meeting was going to begin in less than twenty minutes. With a determined groan, she wrenched herself free of the sheets and shuffled into the bathroom to prepare herself for the day ahead.

    Hana gazed after her lover as she maneuvered her way over the pile of discarded clothes the gamer tends to leave on the floor, entranced by the doctor’s shapely bottom. She didn’t know Angela swayed a little on purpose, she was also a little bit of a tease. With a subtle wink over her shoulder, Angela slid shut the door to the bathroom, leaving the younger girl alone.

    Hana got up from the bed, deciding to rummage around the dressers for her favorite shirt. After she found some underwear, of course. Ever since she first found herself waking up here, in Angela’s quarters, she’d taken to stealing that black turtleneck Angela always wore, with the old Overwatch logo branded on the collar. It was way too large, loose at the neck and shoulders, with sleeves she could hide her hands in. And it was just long enough on her tiny body to be considered barely decent. Angela had long since given up on trying to stop her little girlfriend from wearing her clothes, it never worked.

    After picking up her phone from the charging pad on the nightstand, Hana flicked her way through the various messages and social media notifications that had piled up overnight. Although it had been a long time since she was a professional gamer, she still did stream regularly, whether it be her missions, training exercises, or the occasional gaming session. After all, D. Va can’t just abandon her fans, now can she?

    She kept scrolling through her phone as she made her way out of their bedroom and into the main room of their living quarters. It was more like a small apartment, with living room, dining room, kitchen, and a small office desk all neatly mashed into one room. After setting her phone on the counter in the small kitchen area, Hana set about the task of making her angel’s morning coffee.

    With the coffee machine working its magic, the pilot picked her phone back up, returning her attention to the predictable antics of her hordes of social media followers. She giggled at the cries of abandonment since she hadn’t streamed in two days, the defenders trying to shut down her critics with cringe-worthy praise and admiration, the innumerable people asking for a date. _OMG, like I’d ever go for one of those noobs!_ Too bad for them, Hana’s heart was already taken. Though they didn’t hide their relationship, Hana and Angela thought it best not to broadcast it to the world. It was hard to remember that sometimes, especially if Angela showed up in the middle of a stream.

    Angela entered from the bedroom a few minutes later, dressed simply for the day in her usual work clothes, minus her white lab coat, hair done up in her traditional ponytail. Hana turned around to hand her a large pink mug, emblazoned with her own bunny logo, the one she usually used herself, but she knew Angela loved this mug in particular.

    “Thank you, liebe,” the blonde uttered, gratefully accepting the mug and taking a quick sip, humming her satisfaction.

    “No prob, babe. You know I got your back,” beamed the tiny gamer, gazing up into those beautiful blue eyes. “No time to waste though, better get going before that old man comes lookin’ for ya.”

    Hiding a chuckle behind one hand, Angela quipped, “I doubt Jack would risk coming after me, look who he’d have to risk a fight with!”

    “Damn right! He wouldn’t stand a chance against me!” Hana pronounced confidently, boastfully puffing out her chest, looking even sillier in Angela’s oversized turtleneck, hands on her hips. The laughter that bubbles out of the Swiss washed over her, the sound chiming sweetly in her ears. Hana never tires of hearing her voice, especially her laughter.

    The doctor gave her a quick peck on the lips before heading for the door. “Will you help me don my suit later?” she asked over her shoulder, pink mug still in hand.

    “Sure. Though…” A slow smirk crossed the mischievous gamer’s face, a devious twinkle in her eye. “Getting you undressed first might take longer than usual.”

    Angela blushed a little at the insinuation, but her eyes sparkled with anticipation. “Deal,” she said, not waiting for a reply and she let the door slide open and stepped out, the door automatically closing behind her.

    Hana stared at the closed door for a moment or two after her angel left, grinning like a fool still head over heels in love. Now eager to get her own day started, she skipped her way back to the refrigerator to rummage up something to eat.

 

* * *

 

_1132 hours_

 

    “I hate that you’re going on a mission without me, you know,” Hana whined, finally finished helping Angela get into her protective undersuit. “Gonna miss out on all the action!”

    “I know, liebe, but it can't be helped this time,” Angela replied, pulling the main part of the Valkyrie suit’s body off its stand, putting her head through the collar, and settling the suit in its place. “Besides, it’s a low risk mission, we’re only helping to protect  some medical supplies being delivered to the site of a recent Omnic attack.” She can’t help but chuckle a little at the pout on her girlfriend’s face.

    Hana finished zipping up the body armor, turning to grab the attachable wings, while Angela sat on the bench to pull on her boots. She was mildly annoyed at missing out on any potential action, but more than that, she’d become incredibly protective of her dear doctor. Not that her fellow heroes were incompetent or anything, far from it, but that didn’t stop her from worrying about the blonde angel when she wasn’t there to back her up.

    “Hana? Are you going to stand there holding my wings all day?”

    Angela’s query made the distracted woman look up from the mechanical wings she was holding, right into the doctor’s cerulean eyes, one brow raised quizzically.

    “Right, suppose you’re not gonna be flying anywhere without these!” Hana quickly exclaimed, trying to mask her concern with her usual energetic attitude.

    The way Angela looked at her though, told Hana she didn’t quite get away with it. But the Swiss said nothing, apparently content to merely sit while Hana attached the mechanical wings to her back. Hana stepped back after finishing her work, and watched Angela stand as she affixed her halo styled headgear in its place, and began going through her standard test on the suit’s wings before giving Hana a small smile.

    “Thank you, Hana. It is so much easier to get this thing on with your assistance.” The gratefulness on the doctor’s face was apparent, as was the satisfaction from… earlier.

    “Of course, babe.” Hana smiled, her answer a touch slow.

    “Is something wrong, liebe?” Angela stepped her way around the bench to grab and holster the blaster from its place on the stand next to the Caduceus staff.

    Hesitating, Hana sat down on the now vacant bench, not terribly willing to voice her worry. It wasn’t the first time she'd ever worried about someone, but the look on Angela’s face made Hana think that it was a better idea to not hold anything back from her.

    “It’s the first time I haven’t gone on a mission with you in… I can’t even remember how long.” Hana kept her gaze on the floor, hoping that she didn’t need to elaborate. Especially since she couldn’t change the situation.

    Angela sat down next to her, one arm around the gamer’s waist to pull her close so she could rest her cheek on Hana’s head. “I know all too well the feeling of helplessness when people I care about go off on missions.” Her free hand reached for Hana’s, interlocking their fingers. “But you needn’t fear. I will return to you. After all,” Hana felt Angela’s lips press a soft kiss to her temple, “I still have to make up last night to you.”

    “Damn right you do,” Hana giggled, her spirit successfully lifted. How Angela always manages to read her so well, she’ll never know. Gotta chalk it up to her being the best doctor in the world. She turned to look Angela in the eyes, and met those beautiful blue depths she so loved to fall into, like a portal to the endless sky. “Too bad you’re leaving here in a minute. Would’ve liked to spend more time cuddling.”

    Her face set in a sly smirk, Angela moved her hand from Hana’s waist, trailing up her back, until it settled on the back of her head, fingers laced through her hair. She moved in for a kiss, but stopped just short, her every word whispered against Hana’s lips.

    “I do not want to leave you either, my love.”

    Hana closed that little distance remaining, capturing Angela in a passionate kiss, trying her hardest to convey all she felt, all her love for the beautiful Swiss woman. She couldn't imagine life without Angela in it anymore, her sweet smile, her adoring gaze when Hana visits her in her lab, the tidy way she eats all the foods Hana makes for her, even the sort of irritating way she lectures Hana about all the snacks she eats.

    When the two finally part, slightly out of breath, Hana leaned forward to rest her forehead on Angela’s. “You’re perfect, you know.”

    “Ah, but I’m not number one.”

 _“Strike team members report to the hangar bay.”_ Soldier 76’s gruff voice rang through the facility’s interior speakers, successfully breaking their intimate moment, much to Hana’s displeasure. With one last kiss for Angela, she stood up, moving to grab the Caduceus off its stand. The doctor stood as well, ready to get the mission underway. She turned to leave the armory, and headed in the direction of the hangar bay, Hana at her side, still carrying the Caduceus. It pleased Hana that Angela trusted her so much that she was allowed to carry the staff, something she rarely let anyone touch.

    The silence that followed the two on the way to the hangar bay was comfortable, each simply happy to spend another few minutes in the other’s company. Hana’s mind kept jumping around, between Angela and what she wanted to do with her when she returned, what game she should stream for her fans later today, and whether or not anyone had bothered to make lunch yet in the huge communal kitchen.

    Angela’s face reflected little, she seemed focused on the task at hand, her determined gaze only softening when glanced over at her tiny girlfriend. Hana admired her strength and focus. Even though the doctor hates war and violence, she still puts herself into the middle of it all to protect the innocent.

    The door to the hangar slid open, most of the strike team was already on board the Orca drop ship, except for 76 talking with McCree at the loading ramp. Hana stopped with Angela a few meters short of the ship. Turning to face each other, Hana held out the staff without a word, only a small smile. Angela accepted it, returning the smile.

    “Be safe out there, okay?” Hana had to tilt her head back a little to look up at Angela, her already much taller frame made taller by her Valkyrie suit.

    Angela’s smile faded slightly for a small moment, as it looked like she was remembering something, then returned again, even bigger. “That’s my line, liebling. Thank you for all your help today.” She bent down to kiss Hana’s brow, then turned to cover the small distance to the ship.

    “Glad you could join us, Doc…” drawled McCree, tipping his hat slightly as Mercy walked past.

    “It’s about time, Ziegler,” 76 gruffly stated, following her up the ramp.

    “Oh, shut up, Jack.”

 

* * *

 

    Hana loitered around the hanger until it lifted off, watching Lena start up its engines and quickly run through the preflight checks. She flicked through her phone, leaning against the wall near the hangar entrance, once again cursing that her mechs were inoperable until after Athena worked out whatever bugs they’ve gone and introduced into the targeting systems.

    When it finally came time for them to take off, her eyes followed the ship as it lifted off the ground and out of the large hangar door. Hana followed it out, watching it climb in altitude and change its course south, toward its mission destination. She kept watching it, until it vanished beyond the horizon.

    _Well, I can’t just keep standing here all day,_ Hana thought. Maybe it’s time to find something to eat. Pulling her phone from her pocket, she put up a quick Twitter poll, with a few of the games she’d been wanting to play, deciding to allow her fans to pick what she would stream that day. Plus, she needed to decide what to do for Angela when she returned. That would depend on how the mission went, so she’d need a few options. Dinner and a quiet movie if she’s too tired, but if not… maybe some sexy lingerie. Hana’s face heated a little at the thought, but grinned in excitement.

    _But first, I need food._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well there it is, first chapter of the first thing I've ever posted. Dates are roughly estimated based on what information is given, since I don't think it's ever been revealed as to precisely when the events of Overwatch take place. It'll have to do for now. Now this fic will feature some darker moments, which is why I went ahead and marked it mature, but we'll get plenty of fluff here at the beginning and at a few points along the way. I hope you enjoyed reading this. Please feel free to comment if I screwed something up, or if you just liked what you read.


	2. Engagement

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Angela goes to Lagos on a mission while Hana streams games and drinks Mountain Dew.

_Wednesday, September 21, 2078_

_1747 Hours_

_Lagos, Nigeria_

.

It was pouring rain, as it does during one of the wet seasons in Nigeria. Angela was drenched, with small bloodstains on her suit, not her own blood, fortunately.

    “It’s a good thing we showed up when we did, wouldn’t ya say, doc?” McCree drawled, holstering his weapon with his usual flourish.

    “Perhaps if we’d been a bit quicker, there’d be fewer casualties.” The doctor snapped off her words a little harshly. Mercy’s face held little amusement, only sorrow as her eyes swept over what remained of the initial escort for the convoy. She’d done what she could, using her miraculous healing technology to revive those nearly gone, and quickly patching up those injured, but she could not reverse death. Only eight soldiers remained of the thirty that started with the shipment of medical supplies. The rest were gone, their bodies spread over the hundred meters or so where a large group of local insurgents had attacked the convoy, probably hoping to gain the supplies for themselves.

    The fight was nearly over when they had finally arrived, the few escorts still on the own legs taking what cover they could against the ferocious guerillas. Angela and the rest of the strike team had moved in as quickly as they could, dispatching most of the combatants; those wise enough to retreat in the face of their coordinated counterattack dispersing as they realised who their new opponents were.

    “Such a waste…” the doctor muttered, angered over the seemingly senseless deaths.

    “McCree! Ziegler! Gets you asses in gear, we’re moving out!” Morrison barked, so easily slipping back into his previous role of Strike Commander.

    Angela sighed, already tired of seeing bloodshed. Gently brushing shut the glazed eyes of the dead soldier she was kneeling over, she picked up the Caduceus that had been set to the side and stood up, stretching out her back. The entire street was devastated, buildings destroyed, a couple of the ruins still burning. Scorch marks and bullet holes riddled most of the remaining walls and shacks. At least the rain would keep the fires from spreading.

    The medic followed along behind Jesse, slowly scanning the surrounding area, looking for potential threats, or additional casualties that had been overlooked. Most of the escort vehicles were crippled, they’d have to walk the transport trucks to their destination.

    Lena trotted up, having left their drop ship in Athena’s capable care. “Hey doc, how we doin’?”

    “Everything is satisfactory.” Angela curtly responded. Lena’s habit of chatting idly usually didn’t bother her, but in light of the current situation, it hardly seemed warranted.

    Lena didn’t respond immediately, just quietly strode alongside, keeping an alert watch herself. The ramshackle buildings at the edge of town gave any potential enemies ample hiding locations. They stayed like this for some minutes, the only sounds evident where their own footsteps, the motors from the two transport vehicles, and the stomp of Reinhardt’s power armor. 76 led the column, rifle at the ready, as always.

    They stayed like this for several minutes, escorting what remained of the convoy through the rain farther down the road. Angela loved the rain, there was something refreshing about it. Not that she enjoyed being thoroughly soaked to the bone in a torrential downpour, but at least it was warm here in Nigeria, and not the typical cold climate of her mountainous homeland.

    The city, however, had seen better days. Scattered conflicts had appeared all over the world; omnic attacks have been occuring seemingly at random, and opportunistic factions and gangs would take advantage of local resources in the chaos, as seen here. This area seemed completely deserted, Angela didn’t see many locals as she marched down they rainy street, just the occasional curious eye from behind a window, or a door quickly being shut.

    “So has she asked ya to marry her yet?

    Lena’s unexpected question caught the medic completely off guard, she even blushed a little bit. “What...why would you ask that?”

    “No reason. Just wanted to see how ya would react, ya know?” The cheeky Brit grinned. “Though… you two have been together for awhile. Can’t imagine an ambitious girl like Hana would let a fox like you slip through her fingers.”

    “Lena!”

 

* * *

 

_Watchpoint Gibraltar_

_1802 hours_

 

    “ _Is she even real? Like are we sure she’s not a bot?”_

_“That’s gotta be an aimbot or something.”_

_“D. Va. confirmed aimbot!”_

_“Come on, guys, she’s not hacking, she’s simply too pro!”_

 

    Hana didn’t see the chat scrolling by on the monitor to her right, her focus was entirely on the game in front of her. First person shooters weren’t necessarily her forte, but she was more than proficient at them; good enough to please her ridiculously large audience, well over one hundred thousand viewers. She was streaming their pick from her twitter poll, a new battle royal game that had come out, and was immensely pleased at how well she was doing. She’d won several of her games already, being the last player standing in the final play zone and eliminating everyone else she came across.

    The Korean grinned widely as the blew away her final enemy in a hailstorm of virtual gunfire. “GG!” she proclaimed, winking a her webcam. Gotta play it up a little for her audience, you know?

    Hana glanced at the clock in the corner of one of her monitors, deciding that now was as good a time as any to take a break and do something about dinner. Her gaming room was well lit, her large desk occupying most of the free space in the small room. At one point, this had been her quarters, but since she’d essentially moved into Angela’s, she’d turned this into her own little nerd cave. Posters of some of her favorite games decorate the walls, plus a few from her own movies and events. She even had a few collectables scattered about the room, on shelves along the walls, including a replica C-20A canister rifle, used by the ghosts in Starcraft 2.

    “Alright guys, we’re gonna have to shut the stream down, time for me to find something to eat.” Despite her small size, Hana had a ravenous appetite. “I’ll be back on in an hour though, so don’t go too far!”

    After shutting off her webcam and ending the broadcast, Hana stood, stretching her legs and back. She was still wearing Angela’s turtleneck, she didn’t see any good reason to change out of it today, plus it was warm. Paired with some blue jeans, it was a rather comfortable outfit, even if the sleeves kept falling past her hands a little. After tossing her empty Mountain Dew can into the small waste basket next to her desk and taking off her signature headset, she ventured out, deciding to head for the communal kitchen to see if anyone had made dinner yet.

    As the door locked itself behind her, her phone buzzed in her pocket. Hana pulled the phone out of her pocket; she’d received a message. She stopped mid-step, her face flushing. The message was from McCree, it read, _“Hey kiddo, you should see this!”_ There was a small video file attached, apparently he recorded something. Hana quirked a quizzitive brow as the allowed the file to load, curious to find out what Jesse would find interesting enough to record in the middle of a mission. It was of Lena and Angela, apparently having a little bit of an argument in the rain. Hana couldn’t make out anything they were saying, but it was apparent in body language that Lena was stepping on the doctor’s nerves. Hana smiled, knowing just how easy it was to annoy the doctor when she wasn’t in the mood for shenanigans.

    The doctor suddenly stopped in her tracks, turning to face Tracer. Even through the rain Hana could tell Angela’s face was bright red. Tracer laughed at something the doctor said, and took a step past. Then Mercy whipped the haft of her staff out, whacking the Brit in the back of the head. Hana burst out laughing at the angel’s uncharacteristic action, and the whine of pain that accompanied Lena clutching the back of her head with both hands. Jesse himself was struggling to hold in his laughter, and the video cut out as Morrison started yelling, _“What the hell…”_

    It took a minute for Hana to collect herself, she was laughing so hard her eyes were tearing up. Still giggling, she determined to find out just what was going on. After hastily tapping out an “lol” for Jesse, she sent another message to Lena _“How’s the head?”_

    Lena was quick to respond _“How’d you know?”_

_“I know everything, idiot. What did you do to piss Angie off?”_

_“Nothing I swear!”_

_“Right, and Angie totally smacks me around all the time, for no reason.”_ Hana wasn’t about to let Lena off the hook, not if the silly Brit had legitimately gotten on Angela’s nerves. No one messes with Hana’s girlfriend!

    _“With sarcasm like that, I’d be surprised if she didn't.”_

Now she’s gotten under Hana’s skin, not that it usually took much. _“Listen here, you little shit. If you don’t tell me what you did I’ll make sure Emily knows that it was you that drank that bottle of wine she was saving.”_ Hana grinned evilly as she hit the “send” button, confident Lena would surrender. After all, tiny Korean played to win, and when she had you by the throat, she never let go.

    Lena didn’t respond immediately this time, or at all, which worried Hana a little bit. She stared blankly at her phone for a moment, not really seeing it, just imagining her dear doctor, drenched in the rain, potentially in danger at that very moment. The gamer wilted a little, her shoulders slumped, worry gnawing at her. She slumped against the wall, her appetite gone. She felt ridiculously out of her element, but there was nothing she could do.

    Hana picked herself up, and started walking. Maybe some time spent outside would be nice.

 

* * *

 

_1810 Hours_

_Lagos, Nigeria_

 

    Angela ducked into cover behind Reinhardt’s shield and engaged her Caduceus’ healing stream, quickly patching up the minor wounds the old lion had incurred from the seemingly inevitable surprise attack.

    “Thank you, Angela. Now stay behind me, I will ensure no harm comes to you!” The giant German man would gladly sacrifice his life before he allowed harm to come to anyone he considered an ally.

    _“76, on your left!”_ Tracer yelled over their communicators, warning Morrison of a small flanking force attempting to force him out of cover. The former Strike Commander activated his targeting visor, using its technology to radically improve his abilities in aiming his pulse rifle. He swiftly eliminated the entire flanking force with a fusillade of weapons fire, then scrambled back into cover after sniper fire impacted nearby.

    “Oxton, can you do something about those damn snipers?” 76 growled into his communicator.

    _“Sure thing, luv!”_ Angela saw Lena zip out, covered by both McCree and 76 unleashing a hailstorm of covering fire until she blinked out of sight. A few moments later, a couple of explosions signaled the end of their sniper problems.

    The blonde doctor’s head snapped around at the sound of an explosion near the transport trucks, a grenade had gone off near a couple of the remaining escorts. Two men were down, a third dragging a fourth behind a low wall. She took flight, winging her way over with all the speed her Valkyrie suit could muster. Wasn’t quite fast enough, some opportunist put a few rounds downrange in her direction, managing to score a single grazing hit to her left thigh. Angela only noticed it after landing near the wounded soldiers, quickly disregarding it. A little pain, easily tolerated, would not distract her from her patients.

    “Hold him still,” she instructed the man who was still conscious, making sure all of their heads were down behind cover. The poor soldier nodded, holding tightly to his severely injured comrade that he had dragged away from the shrapnel ridden area. Angela quickly assessed his condition; he had a large amount of shrapnel embedded in his right arm and the right side of his upper body, and he was bleeding from a gash on the side of his head. The shrapnel would have to wait until after the battle, first priority was to stabilize him.

    A rocket flew overhead, striking a nearby building, showering the doctor and the two soldiers in bits of rubble and brick dust. Angela didn’t even blink, so focused was she on her task. Using her Caduceus, she closed up most of his major wounds, though she would have to reopen some to remove the shrapnel later.

    “Doc, you got incomin’!” McCree’s shouted warning allowed Angela a split second before gunfire sailed just over her head.

    “Damn!” she cursed. Setting aside her staff for a moment, she grabbed the injured soldier’s discarded rifle. Though she was primarily a medic, and a doctor, she was fully weapons trained, and would not allow further harm to come to the injured under her care. She used every opportunity to pop out of cover to provide her squad some precise supporting fire, until the rifle ran empty. Tossing it aside, she took up her Caduceus, using her suit to hastily fly back to Morrison’s position, who had managed to get himself pinned down behind a ruined car.

    “In a bit of trouble are we, Jack?” The doctor said, as she engaged her staff’s damage booster, overcharging 76’s rifle, drastically increasing it’s stopping power.

    “Nothing we haven’t handled before, Ziegler,” the old soldier grumbled as he launched his underbarrel rockets at a group of insurgents that had foolishly chosen to clump together.

 

* * *

 

_1830 Hours_

_Watchpoint Gibraltar_

 

    Twilight was settling over Gibraltar, though Hana took little notice. Although she was strolling around the outside of the base, her mind was hundreds of miles away, her thoughts with the one she longed most to be with. _Damn! What is happening over there?_

She shook her head, pulling out her phone, trying to find something to distract herself. Having nothing but time to worry on her hands was going to drive her mad. She opened her image gallery, opting to flick through her saved pictures. There were alot of silly images from the internet, not to mention plenty of pictures of herself and the other members of Overwatch. She stopped walking, and leaned against a railing overlooking the sea. Hana had found one of her favorite photos, one she had taken while Angela wasn’t looking.

    The beautiful blonde had been leaning against the counter in the communal kitchen, mug of coffee in one hand, staring at the electronic tablet in the other through her reading glasses. Angela had been wearing a dark blue sweater that bared her collarbones, and grey leggings, though her hair was still put up into her usual ponytail. She was so engrossed in some data from a recent experiment that she didn’t notice Hana snapping a picture until the simulated click of the phone taking the picture drew the doctor’s attention.

    The tiny gamer grinned, she remembered that moment well. It had been over a year ago, several months after they had started seeing each other. Angela had still blushed when she realized Hana had been watching her before taking that photograph. By then the doctor had to have known Hana found her attractive, yet somehow she still seemed embarrassed by the idea of someone finding her desirable for anything other than her medical or scientific prowess.

    Hana continued flicking through her photos, a large portion of which were of her girlfriend, or of the two of them together. All of the memories attached to those pictures flooded her mind’s eye. There was that time from the beach, where Hana managed to get sunburnt, despite all of Angela’s warnings to use more sunscreen. Another picture reminded her of the occasion when they visited South Korea; Hana had been so excited to show her around the city of Busan, where the MEKA headquarters was located. One showed Angela slouched over her desk, having fallen asleep while in the middle of filling out reports after a sleepless night.

    So many memories, all of them precious. Hana knew some people felt their relationship odd, what with the difference in age, but she didn’t care. She couldn’t change how she felt, or who she loved, and she didn’t want to. Despite how difficult life had gotten, being part of Overwatch was not an easy job, the last two years had been the most wonderful of her life, mostly because of who she’d spent it with. And Hana wanted to have many many more years with her beloved doctor.

    The young woman fished out from her pocket a golden ring, set with a diamond flanked by golden wings. She’d had this for a while now, but hadn’t found the right moment to ask her beloved doctor, hadn’t been able to muster the courage. She hadn’t spoken about it to anyone actually, no one knew of her intention. If only she could read Angela’s mind as easily as the doctor seemed able to read Hana’s, the gamer would know how she felt about the future. Hana didn’t want to risk their relationship by asking for marriage if the doctor didn’t want the same thing. At some point, however, she would have to take the risk.

    Clutching the ring to her chest, Hana closed her eyes, feeling the breeze from the sea. It felt good, the wind in her hair, doing much to calm Hana’s mind. Putting the ring safely away in her pocket, she turned to head back into the base. Marriage was a problem for another day, for right now, her appetite had returned. Plus, she had a stream to return to.

 

* * *

 

_1900 Hours_

_Lagos, Nigeria_

 

    The battle was still raging, there were significantly more hostiles than they expected. But progress was being made, some were starting to retreat in the face of the seemingly unending stream of firepower from the small strike team. There were no further casualties among the escorts, aside from the grenade attack earlier, and Angela was delighted that none of her friends had incurred any serious injury.

    Reinhardt was in the thick of it, his armor doing its job of protecting him from small arms while he dispatched his foes with powerful strikes with his rocket hammer. Tracer could be seen skirting the edges, taking out any isolated enemies. McCree was his usual smug self, his accuracy as good as ever, his every shot landing on target. Morrison was everywhere, barking orders to his squadmates, and unleashing a hail of gunfire wherever it was needed. Mercy backed them all up, flying between her teammates in a display of angelic grace. She even scored a few eliminations herself with her blaster, the enemy wasn’t terribly used to looking up.

    _“Isn’t it about time for these guys to take a hint?”_ Tracer huffed over comms.

    _“Course not, that’d be too easy,”_ McCree drawled.

    The doctor landed next to Soldier 76 as he replied, “Seems like they’re running out of reinforcements, now’s the time to push ‘em back.”

    Acknowledgements from the entire squad accompanied a renewed counterattack, each person doing their best to force the insurgent force out of the immediate area.

    “Morrison!” Reinhardt shouted over the commotion of gunfire and explosions, “There’s a group of civilians in the shop two buildings down! The building is unstable!”

    “Ziegler, get your ass over there and get those civilians to safety!” Jack ordered.

    The doctor didn’t bother to acknowledge the order, already in flight before 76 had opened his mouth. She quickly located the damaged shop, landing in front of it, before ducking inside to avoid a wild spray of automatic fire in her general direction. She was greeted by the shrieks of a small family, a mother, father, and three children, one infant in the mother’s arms, a young girl, and the oldest a small boy no more than 6 years old.

    “Don’t worry, I am here to help,” the angelic medic stated, brushing her rain drenched hair out of her eyes. “This building is about to collapse, we have to get you out of here.” A nearby explosion violently shook the building, causing part of the ceiling to crash into the ground, neatly punctuating the urgency of her words.

    “You’re Mercy!” the mother said, her face scared, but hopeful now that she recognized her rescuer.

    Angela smiled slightly. “Yes, I am. We need to move, stay close to me, alright?” The parents, nodded resolutely, the father picking up the young girl while ordering his terrified son to stick close. “Jack, I have the civilians. I’m prepared to move them.”

    _“Good, move them back up the street two blocks, Oxton will provide cover.”_

“Alright, we have to move up the street. Stay close to the walls, and stay low. We will cover you.” With her blaster in hand, Angela poked out the front of the building, ready to suppress any hostile activity. She motioned the family to get moving, silently cursing their hesitation. But move they did, away from the battle. Progress was halted when a small group of insurgents crashed through a door on the other side of the street, forcing Mercy to shove the family behind a wrecked bus for cover.

    “Tracer, we are pinned down over here!”

    “Don’t worry, luv, the calvary is here!”

    _And not a second too early,_ griped the doctor in her mind. Lena quickly tried to suppress the enemy squad. While they were distracted, Mercy led the family down the length of the wrecked vehicle, and ordered them to race across to the next building and to get inside while she provided covering fire. The family raced across the open ground after Angela poked around cover to put down any heads that were poking out. Tracer zipped around, tossing one of her explosive devices into the group, laying waste to their position. Mercy slowly followed the family, scanning for additional threats.

    A small cry drew the doctor’s attention, the little boy had fallen. “Keep going!” she shouted at the family, taking wing to cover the short distance to the boy. She knelt down over him, holstering her sidearm. She wrapped one arm around the boy, ready to carry him to safety, when suddenly something exploded only a few meters away. The air was driven from her lungs, her back felt like fire. Something struck her head, and her legs, back, arms, and suddenly, she couldn’t move at all. Her chest was being crushed, she couldn’t breathe. Slowly, the world slipped away, fading to darkness.

 

* * *

 

_1945 Hours_

_Watchpoint Gibraltar_

 

Hana sat down at her desk, her belly now full of the simple chicken and rice dish she had whipped up since no one had made any dinner yet. She pulled up her game list, trying to decide what she felt like playing now. Maybe some of the new VR games? She hadn’t had a chance yet to try out the VR headset she recently purchased, maybe the stream would enjoy watching her set it up.

    At that moment the door beeped, someone wanted to enter. Pushing her chair away from the desk, Hana stood and walked over to open to door for whoever it was. She was greeted by Winston, his large body completely dwarfing the tiny Korean.

    “Oh hey, Winston, I was just about to start stream…”

    “Hana,” Winston interrupted, “The strike team is on their way back. I’m sorry to tell you this, but Dr. Ziegler has been seriously injured.”

    The world seemed to suddenly go cold, an icy pit forming in the middle of Hana’s stomach. “What happened?” was all she could ask, her voice tiny.

    “I don’t know, details are sketchy,” Winston responded, trying his best to not completely destroy the poor girl in front of him. “All Commander Morrison would say is that we’d better have our med bay ready and waiting for their return.”

    “Why would they come all the way back here?” Hana demanded.

    The genetically engineered gorilla looked distinctly uncomfortable. “Well, my guess is due to the conflicts in the area, local resources aren’t capable of handling the severity of her injury.”

    “WHAT ARE YOU SAYING? JUST HOW BAD IS IT?” Hana’s shout could be heard several halls down.

    “I don’t know, Hana. We won’t know more until they arrive.” After a moment of empty silence, Winston turned to leave, presumably to make sure the facility’s medical staff were preparing for the arrival of their comrades.

    The door slid shut, and Hana fell against it, sinking to her knees, tears spilling from her eyes, fists beating helplessly against the thick metal door. Everything suddenly seemed wrong, her darkest fears were coming true. Worst of all, she could still do nothing but wait for Angela to be brought back, battered and broken. Choking back a sob, Hana wiped her face, determined to hold it together until she knew Angela was okay. She would be okay. She had to be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one took some work. Many thanks to my sister Rei, both for editing and beta-reading! I couldn't have made this a good as it is without her help. I hope you enjoyed this part, though it wasn't nearly as fluffy as the first chapter. We've got a long way to go before we get to the end, though I'm not quite sure exactly how many chapter this will end up being. Either way, thank you for reading!


	3. Aftermath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The doctor is returned to the base in Gibraltar and given urgent medical care, meanwhile Hana has to deal with a particular annoyance while trying to eat lunch.

_Thursday, September 22, 2078_

_0230 Hours_

_Watchpoint Gibraltar_

 

    Hana waited for the return of the strike team inside the quarters she shared with Angela. She couldn’t keep still, so she paced around the living room, anxiety coursing throughout her entire body. What the hell happened to Angela back in Lagos? How badly hurt was she? She hadn’t died on the way back, had she? Unanswered questions bubbled around in the Korean’s mind until she felt she was going to go crazy.

    She  jumped when Athena’s voice came over the intercom. “Miss Song, the strike team is about to arrive in the hangar bay.”

    Without bothering to answer, Hana took off out her quarters in a dead sprint. All her built up worry gave her a kind of frantic energy, coupled with endurance from years of strenuous training, which enabled her to run down the several corridors from their quarters to the hangar bay at a near record pace. The door to the hangar slid aside so she could rush in, just as the main loading door on the Orca was opening. The base’s medical staff, people selected by Angela herself, were waiting just outside, ready to move their chief medical officer onto a stretcher to transport her to the medical bay. The medics rushed inside before anyone could exit the Orca, wasting no time in trying to get to their patient.

    McCree managed to squeeze his way past the huddled medical personnel, and caught Hana before she could rush her way into the Orca as well.

    “Hold on there, kiddo, you need t’ stay out of their way,” Jesse drawled, a hand clamped tightly onto each of Hana’s shoulders.

    “Damnit Jesse, let me go!” Hana strained to see past the tight circle that ringed the injured angel; she couldn’t catch a glimpse of her dear doctor. All she could do was struggle to get free, whilst the noise of the hangar made trying to overhear anything that was being said impossible.

    After nearly a minute of this, Hana had had enough. She tried to elbow McCree in the ribs, but he wasn’t caught off guard, his grip on her didn’t loosen in the slightest. When two men picked up the gurney to move it onto the drop ship, Hana finally stopped struggling. All her will to fight quickly died when she saw them lift Angela onto the wheeled stretcher.

    The blonde woman was a broken mess, her wings mangled probably beyond repair. Her face and hair were covered in blood from a gash on the side of her head. Her neck was already wrapped with a protective brace. Hana gasped at the sight of her left arm, obviously broken. There were gashes and rents all over the Valkyrie suit. What skin Hana could see was badly bruised. Hana had seen injuries this bad before, but none of them had survived. The medics carefully settled Angela down on the gurney, obviously worried about making anything worse.

    After getting Angela off the drop ship, they quickly began wheeling her out of the hangar and toward the medbay. Hana finally managed to tear herself out of McCree’s grasp, unable to do anything else but follow as they rushed the injured doctor through the interior door. She followed closely behind as they moved down the corridor. Morrison caught up behind her, right as they neared the entrance to the medical wing. The doctors kept right on moving, straight for the emergency operating room, where both of them were neatly shut out.

    Silence reigned over the two for several minutes as Hana stared at the thick door labeled “Medical Personnel Only”.

    “Might as well grab a chair, Song, they’re probably going to be a while,” 76 said, sounding just as grumpy as usual.

    “What the fuck happened out there?” Hana’s worry was turning to anger, desperate for an outlet. She faced the old soldier, her body language demanding an answer for this mess.

    He faced the young soldier, his face still hidden by his visor. “Stray rocket hit near Angela while she was helping a kid that had tripped while running to safety. Took out most of the wall, and half the building fell on them.” 76’s blunt statement took all the wind out of Hana’s sails, quickly wiping away the building frustration, replacing it with horror. “She shielded the child with her own body. Little good it did, he died anyway.”

    Tracer came trotting up, having finished shutting down the Orca. “How’s she doin’?”

    “Don’t know,” Morrison replied. Hana’s shoulders slumped as her gaze went back to the closed door.

    Lena watched Hana carefully, obviously not wanting to worry her any more than she already was. The Brit put a comforting hand on Hana’s shoulder, squeezing gently. “Don’t worry, luv. Angie’s gonna pull through, everything’s gonna be fine.”

    Hana desperately wanted to believe her words. Only time would tell. Deciding she would wait inside Angela’s office, she turned and shuffled her way through the medbay to a door on the far side.

    Once the Korean was out of earshot, Tracer asked Morrison, “She’s not handling it too well, is she?”

    Morrison grunted, “She’s dealing with it the only way she knows how.”

    “Right. Can’t say I blame her, I dunno how I’d react if Em got hurt.” Sympathy painted the Brit’s face, then turned more serious as she faced her old commander. “Still, something doesn’t seem quite right. Seemed like those guerrillas had way too much time to prepare, like they knew we were coming, and exactly what route we’d take.”

    Soldier 76 didn’t reply, simply wheeled around and marched out of the medbay.

 

* * *

 

_Saturday, September 24, 2078_

_0930 Hours_

 

    “Come now, Miss Song. You really should go and get yourself some rest now.” Hana turned her gaze up toward the kindly nurse who was checking Angela’s vitals. The woman meant well, but Hana wasn’t going anywhere. “I’m more than happy to alert you if anything should change.”

    “That’s okay, I’m fine.” Hana was tired, her eyes red. She hadn’t slept since the surgeons had finished putting Angela back together. They’d come to her several hours later to tell her the news; they’d done what they could for Angela, fixing her broken bones, stopping her internal bleeding, even repairing the spinal damage that wouldn’t have been repairable without Angela’s own technology. They were quick to caution her though, it was impossible to tell if there was any lasting damage, especially from the head injuries. Angela had definitely suffered at least one concussion, and nearly died from blood loss. That she hadn’t woken up yet wasn’t unexpected either.

    “At least make sure you eat something, alright?” When the nurse didn’t get a response, she quietly left the room, shutting the door behind her. Hana was grateful for the quiet, as it could get a little noisy out in the medbay. The little patient room was very quiet, though. Quiet enough that Hana could hear Angela’s breathing if she listened carefully.

    Hana hadn’t brought herself to touch Angela yet, she’d just been sitting on a stool next to the bed for two days. The poor woman looked so frail, her body covered in bandages, a large one wrapped around most of her head, though her face was left mostly bare. Her left arm and right leg were both splinted, her bones had been completely shattered. The sight of her still broke Hana’s heart; Angela had never looked so… fragile.

    A small breath of air from a vent in the ceiling stirred the hair around Angela’s face, a few strands fell across her sleeping eyes. Hana reached up to brush the offending hair from her angel’s forehead, her fingers gently caressing the sleeping woman’s brow. That one little touch opened a deluge of feelings, feeling the soft warmth of Angela’s skin broke open the dam that Hana had erected around the torrent of emotions she’d been holding back for two days.

    Long overdue tears streaked down Hana’s face as she cradled Angela’s uninjured hand in both of her own, thumbs gently stroking the back of the doctor’s knuckles. Something like relief flooded the young woman. Angela was here, and alive. All the exhaustion and worry Hana had to bear the last couple of days finally lifted somewhat. She leaned down, pressing her face to Angela’s hand, her tears wetting the doctor’s knuckles.

    “Don’t ever worry me like this again, Angie,” the tiny gamer sobbed, finally releasing the iron grip she had on herself. “When I heard you’d been hurt, I felt so numb. I didn’t know what to do. I’ve never felt so helpless. I’m the best, I’ve always been in control. Until suddenly, I wasn’t.”

    She nuzzled into Angela’s hand some more, desperately needing Angela to know that Hana was here, that she was safe, and that Hana needed her. “I’m an idiot, you know. I spend too much time playing games, and I eat too many snacks. And sometimes I forget what time it is, and leave you waiting for hours while I’m still streaming.”

    “Please…” Hana begged through her tears. “Please just wake up, Angie. Scold me for snacking too much before dinner. Laugh cause I tripped or did something stupid. Just… please…wake up... ”

 

* * *

 

_1320 Hours_

 

    Hana sat herself down at a table in the mess hall, having made herself a simple meal, a simple chicken and rice dish she’d made a million times. A girl had to eat sometime, after all, and it had been quite a while since she’d eaten anything. She was still exhausted, but the tension she’d been carrying around had lessened. She ate simply, mechanically, not really enjoying the food. Hana merely wanted to wolf it down so she could get back to the medbay.

    Of course, no one could possibly leave her alone, just about everyone had to stop and ask how she and Angela were doing. Hana appreciated the sentiments, but it grated on her nerves somewhat, especially when McCree decided he just had to sit down in front of her.

    “Hey there, kiddo, how’re you doin’?” His ridiculous accent was still a little difficult for Hana to understand sometimes, despite her excellent grasp of the English language.

    “Tired. You know, um… I never thanked you. For helping bring Angie back.” Hana shifted uncomfortably in her seat. Expressing gratitude wasn’t something she was used to doing. Seems there were alot of things lately that she wasn’t used to.

    “Oh, don’t worry yourself ‘bout that. There’s not a man or woman here that wouldn’t do anything for our favorite doctor,” Jesse grinned. Lena had told Hana that Jesse was the one who had carried the doctor back to the Orca after Reinhardt and Morrison had finished digging her out of the rubble.

    “Still, thank you.”

    “You’re welcome, Hana,” Jesse replied with real warmth in his voice. “Don’t worry about Angela too much. She’s been hurt before, and she always comes back stronger than ever.”

    “I know. I’m just worried; I can’t help it.” Hana poked at what remained of her food with her fork, not really feeling like eating anymore.

    “Nothing wrong with that, we all are. But you gotta remember to take care o’ yourself too. Or you won’t be able to take care of the doc when she wakes up.”

    “No need to worry about taking care of Doctor Ziegler.” Hana whipped her head around to glare up at Fareeha Amari, the arrogant Egyptian was looking down her nose at the younger soldier. Amari smirked, “If Song here should falter, I’ll be sure to catch the doctor before she fell.”

    Hana’s eye twitched. This wasn’t the first time Fareeha had tried to provoke her. Normally she’d just laugh it off, knowing that Amari was just jealous. This was going way too far. So Hana stood, drawing up every scrap of her diminutive height, squaring her shoulders toward the Egyptian. “Somehow, I doubt Angela would want the attention of a bird-brained grunt like you.”

    That got under Fareeha’s skin, if her immediate frown was any indication. “At least I’m not a kid still playing games.”

    “You’re just mad you’re not as good as I am.”

    “And just how good is that, when you cannot protect those closest to you?” Amari smirked again, sure she’d regained the upper hand.

    Something in Hana snapped, and she lashed out, determined to smack that grin right off that damn woman’s face. Fareeha was surprised, but was too quick, her soldier’s instincts serving her well. She block Hana’s fist, and struck her in the stomach, completely winding the younger woman.

    “That’s enough Fareeha.” McCree finally decided to step in. He had circled around the table, and was now in between the two women. “You’ve stepped over the line. Angela’s made her choice, you need to learn to live with that. And I don’t think she’d take too kindly to you goadin’ poor Hana here into a fight, especially considerin’ everythin’ that’s goin’ on.”

    Hana glared past Jesse’s shoulder at that vile woman, still clutching her stomach while trying to catch her breath. Fareeha’s expression was full of malice. Then the Egyptian turned on her heel and strode out of the mess hall, followed by Hana’s angry gaze until the door slid shut.

    “You alright, kiddo?” Jesse’s stern expression had softened, he put a hand on her shoulder, trying to comfort her somehow.

    “Yeah yeah,” she waved him off. “What the fuck is her problem?”

    Hana and the cowboy sat down again, this time on the same side of the table. “Come on, you know she’s had a thing for Angela since she was a little girl,” McCree drawled as he took his seat next to Hana.

    “I don’t care! Doesn’t give her the right to treat me like that.” Hana fumed. Fareeha nearly always managed to irritate her, regardless of the circumstances. It didn’t help that Angela never really spoke about her time spent in the Middle East, before the Recall. It was likely that she ran into Amari at some point in those years, but Angela never spoke of it, and she was adamant that there was nothing between them.

    “No, I don’t suppose it does.”

    Hana picked at her food for a little while longer, while Jesse sat in companionable silence. The little gamer would never have expected the cowboy to become a good friend, since they had so little in common, but he was a close friend of Angela’s, and Jesse happily befriended the Korean once it became obvious she had fallen for the angelic doctor.

    A buzzing in her pocket distracted Hana from the now cold food in front of her. It was a short, simple message from Lena. There were only two words, but they were enough to completely change the young woman’s attitude from sullen irritation to hopeful excitement.

    _“She’s awake!”_

Jesse looked up at her quizzically when she bolted out of her seat. “What’s up?”

    “I gotta go, she’s finally awake!” She hurriedly started cleaning up the mess she’d made in the kitchen when Jesse followed her in.

    “Go on, girl, I’ll clean this up for ya.” The grin on his face was genuine, he was clearly happy to hear his friend was up.

    Hana thanked him with a quick hug before hurrying out of the kitchen and running down the halls toward the medbay. She passed by several others on her way, but paid them little attention, she had somewhere to be. The medbay doors slid open, everything inside looked normal, the couple of people on duty were filling out reports at their stations. Hana quickly crossed the distance to Angela’s patient room, right as Lena slid the door open and stepped out.

    “Boy, you sure got here fast, Hana,” Lena said, bouncing to the side, out of Hana’s way. “She’s still quite weak, so don’t jump on her, alright?”

    “Uh huh, thanks, Lena,” Hana remarked sarcastically, rolling her eyes at the Brit. Lena laughed, though, already walking away toward the nurse’s station.

    Hana poked her head in the door, and the sight lifted the weight right off her shoulders. Angela was still lying in her bed, but her head had been raised up a little. She was definitely awake, her blue eyes met Hana’s brown ones, and smiles crossed both faces.

    “Good morning, sleepyhead,” Hana said sweetly, closing the door behind her before moving to stand next to the bed, on Angela’s right.

    “It’s after noon, liebe.” Angela’s voice, weak as it sounded, was like water to a girl dying of thirst, how Hana had so needed to hear it.

    Hana took Angela’s hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. “How are you feeling?”

    Angela relaxed back in her bed. “Quite sore. My head aches a good bit, but nothing I have not dealt with before.” She smiled up at Hana. “But, most importantly, I am happy to see you.”

    “So what did the other doctors say?” Hana couldn’t help but ask.

    “Many things. Shattered radius and ulna in my left arm, plus a break in the right tibia. Moderate spinal damage, multiple lacerations, three cracked ribs, plus all of the bruising and swelling to go with it.” Angela listed it all as if she were speaking of any other patient, not her own body, but she did not fail to notice the growing look of concern on Hana’s face. “But they’ve repaired most of the damage, but I’ll have to be careful with my arm and leg for a couple of weeks. There won’t be any lasting damage, especially since I am sure you will not let me get into too much trouble for a little while.”

    “I see, that’s good. Sorry I wasn’t here when you woke up, my stomach couldn’t wait any longer,” Hana said, feeling a little guilty.

    Angela shook her head, “That is alright, liebe. Lena told me you have hardly left this room since they finished putting me back together. I am very sorry to have worried you.”

    “No, that’s okay.” Hana felt all the tension finally leave her body. Angela was okay, everything finally seemed right again. She plopped down onto the stool next to the bed, scooting it as close as she could get without banging her knees on something. “You were just doing what you do, helping people that need it.”

    Angela’s face darkened somewhat. Apparently, Lena told the doctor everything that had happened, including the death of the little boy she had tried to save. Failure was not something Angela tolerated well, especially when someone got hurt, or died as a result. Hana knew she had to distract the doctor from her thoughts before they delved too deeply into self-recrimination.

    “Gotta say, though, you look good for someone who’s been asleep for two days,” Hana giggled. Angela smiled that beautiful smile of hers, the image only slightly off with the bandage still wrapped around her head.

    The tired doctor closed her eyes. “Looks like I am going to be stuck here for a couple of days. Despite all my own technology, seems we cannot fix everything so easily.”

    “Finally, the doc gets a taste of her own medicine, huh.” Hana grinned as Angela whined softly in protest. “Can I get you anything?”

    “Well,” Angela opened her eyes, looking up at Hana. “I am a patient here, yes?”

    Hana nodded.

    Angela continued, “Well, as a doctor, I would have to say this patient requires extensive cuddling, as soon as possible.”

    “Uhhh, I’m not gonna hurt you am I?” Not that Hana minded cuddling her precious doctor, she just didn’t want to accidentally hurt her.

    “Please, Hana…” The imploring look in Angela’s eyes pulled at Hana’s heart. Nodding slightly, she climbed onto the bed after Angela scooched over a little to make room for the tiny gamer. With some difficulty, the Swiss turned onto her side and latched onto her little girlfriend, while being careful of her splinted left arm. Hana embraced her as gently as she could, holding Angela’s head to her chest. The little soldier stroked the blonde’s loose hair, doing her best to comfort the poor wounded doctor.

    Soon enough, Angela’s breathing slowed, the tight grip she had on Hana’s shirt loosened. Looking down, Hana could only smile softly; her angel was asleep. She could only watch her love for a few minutes before her own eyes slid shut, her own exhaustion and relief finally pulling her out of wakefulness.

    Nothing disturbed the pair for several hours. They didn’t even wake when Lena opened the door a little loudly to see if they wanted any dinner.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it is, as promised, though a touch later than I really wanted. Life has an annoying tendency to get in the way sometimes. Again, many thanks to my sister, Rei, both for editing my work, and the encouragement she gives me. Ideally I'll get chapter four up in another week or so.


	4. Fatigue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Angela grapples with her emotions, meanwhile, Hana is doing some training with McCree.

    _It was dark, cold, and inhospitable in the little room Angela found herself in. She could hear gunfire outside the window in the street below; an explosion rocked the building she was in, shattering the window. A large shard of glass flew past her face, slicing a neat cut in her cheek, less than an inch below her right eye. Angela flinched, putting one gloved hand to her face._

_“I’m scared!” wailed the child she had her arms around. She would have loved to just fly the child out, but there was too much fire in the vicinity, they would not likely survive. She tried to comfort the child in an effort to quiet him. The boy’s eyes were squeezed shut, tears leaking from the corners._

     _Another explosion shook their building. Angela could smell the acrid smoke of a fire starting in the ground floor below her. They couldn’t stay here any longer._

_“Morrison, I need support. This position is untenable, I need to get this civilian out.”_

_No response._

_“Jack, come in, I need cover!”_

_Her comms were still silent. There wasn’t even static._

_“Verdammt!” She cursed under her breath. She would have to move the child out of here quickly, this building was becoming unstable. She peaked out one of the busted windows, scanning the ramshackle building next door. The fighting seemed to have moved a little ways off, for what reason, the medic couldn’t tell. Appearing relatively undamaged, the next building was probably the only realistic move. She pulled the child close to her chest, keeping her staff in one hand. She flung them both out of the window, spread her wings as quickly as possible, and at the last possible moment, curled herself around the child as they burst through her target window in a shower of broken glass. After rolling across she came to a gentle stop against the far wall._

_Angela quickly sat up and checked the child for injuries. He was scared, but unharmed. Her Valkyrie suit had done its job in protecting her as well._

_“Jack, respond damn it!”_

_Nothing. She tried raising anyone else on comms, but to no avail. She was alone. She didn’t know if they were injured or worse. Another explosion burst nearby, she couldn’t quite tell from where. She could hear enemies scurrying down the alleyway below them._

_“I think she’s in here!” One of them shouted._

_Angela moved to another room on the second floor and carefully glanced out of the window. She was surrounded, no chance of escape. Enemy soldiers, their expressions all oddly blank, covered nearly every possible escape. Her analytical mind held no delusions, she wasn’t going to get out of here alive. All she could do was die defending the innocent child._

_The doctor pushed the little boy into a closet, shutting the door. There wasn’t any furniture in the room to barricade anything with, she’d have to make do with the doorways. Drawing her sidearm, she prepared to make her stand at the entry to the room, looking down the long hallway that held the only stairwell. Until she actually looked at her blaster, her serious face turning confused. Where did this pink pistol come from?_

“Angie...”

    _That was Hana’s voice. Just what was going on, the doctor wondered. She could hear the poor boy cry inside his closet, he must be so confused, so scared. The crash of splintering wood from a door being kicked open told her the enemy had entered the floor below, she could hear them marching through the rooms, up the stairs._

_A hand touched her elbow, and she nearly jumped out of her skin, until she realized it was just the child. When had he come out of the closet? Shots erupted from down the hall, one struck her shoulder, causing her to drop Hana’s pink pistol. She shoved the little boy back further into the room, and slammed the wooden door shut, falling against it._

_The medic didn’t have to time to contemplate her situation. After hearing soldiers come running up the corridor, she rolled away from the door just in time to avoid the hail of gunfire that erupted through the shabby piece of wood, cutting large gaps out of the bullet riddled door. Angela scurried over to the child on the far side of the room. His screams echoed in her ears, but did not drown out the sound of a grenade being tossed through the ruined door, rolling into the center of the room. Her guts clenched, she wrapped herself around the boy, shielding him with her body._

“Angela!”

    _The world turned to fire and pain._

 

* * *

 

_Sunday, September 25, 2078_

_0325 Hours_

_Watchpoint Gibraltar_

 

    Angela’s eyes snapped open, her face was flushed, her skin slick with sweat. She found herself lying on her back, looking at that now familiar ceiling above her large, soft bed.

    “Angie? Are you okay?” Angela looked to the side, right into her dear, sweet Hana’s face. She looked concerned, propped up on her elbows, one hand on Angela’s unhurt arm. “You were sweating and shaking, like you were having a nightmare.”

    Angela sat up, wincing at the pain in her ribs and arm. Clearly her painkillers had started to wear off. She swung her legs to the side to hang off the edge of the bed, away from Hana. The Swiss could feel the tears in her eyes; she desperately tried to hold them back, hugging herself tightly. The dream was already fading away, but she could still feel the helplessness of the last mission, the weight of her failure. The look on that child’s face, the fear in his eyes, was seared into her memory, along with all of the others she had failed over the years.

    She covered her mouth with one hand, and squeezed her eyes shut, desperate to keep her emotions from overwhelming her. How could she have let that boy die? There was nothing she could have done, she knew that. It made no difference, she still failed. Her one mission, to protect life, she had failed. Again.

    The reality of her own weakness washed over her again, the pain of being crushed under the ruined building still fresh in her memory. She felt frozen in place again, unable to move, stuck under the weight of her own guilt. She didn’t hear the rustle of sheets behind her, she didn’t notice Hana moving behind her until the gamer’s small arms gently wrapped themselves around Angela’s shoulders. Hana fully pressed herself against the doctor’s back, enveloping the older woman in a warm embrace. The younger rested her chin on Angela’s shoulder, nuzzling her cheek against Angela’s ear.

    “It’s okay, Angie. I’m here, I’ve got you,” Hana whispered.

    The sweet chime of the smaller girl’s voice broke down the walls Angela was trying to keep around herself. Tears fell freely down her cheeks, her body shuddered. Hana slid up a little, kneeling on the bed beside her angel, and got the older woman to unclench enough to slip into a proper hug. Angela let herself fall into Hana’s embrace. She buried her face in the crook of Hana’s neck, she gripped the front of Hana’s t-shirt at the shoulders hard enough to for her damaged hand to throb in protest.

    There was no loud wailing from the doctor, no overly dramatic sobbing. Instead, her every breath was strained, she whimpered as she struggled against every convulsion, her every tear painfully stung her eyes, every sob a ragged intake of breath followed by a shaky exhale. She cried like her grief and frustration were tearing at her very soul.

    How long she cried, Angela wasn’t sure. Her mind was spinning with images of the now dead boy. What even had been his name? Angela never found out. Now he was gone, dead because she had failed to save him. He would never grow up, the flame of his life snuffed out by actions far out of his control. But Angela had lived. Somehow, she had survived, and the guilt she felt weighed heavily on her.

    When the Swiss finally started calming down, she realized she was laying down again, on top of Hana, who still held the doctor in her arms. Easing her grip on Hana’s shirt, Angela lifted her head and looked down at her little girlfriend. Hana wore a little smile on her face as she brought one hand up to gently wipe the tears off Angela’s with her thumb.

    “Hey there, beautiful,” Hana whispered.

    Just looking at the beautiful girl beneath her flooded the exhausted doctor with relief, hearing that sweet voice soothed her mind in a way nothing else could. Whatever anyone else thought of the young woman, she had a unique ability to comfort the doctor. She could quell Angela’s fears without even meaning to, quiet the turbulence within the medic’s mind. Angela adored her for it.

    Now completely exhausted, and with her injuries now aching quite painfully, Angela dropped her head back down onto Hana’s shoulder. “S… Sorry…,” She mumbled into Hana’s neck.

    Hana giggled, and gently rubbed Angela’s back. “It’s alright, not like you haven’t done the same for me.” True, there had been a few times where Hana needed comforting. “Anyway, are you feeling better?”

    “Mmmm hmmm,” Angela acknowledged. She didn’t really want to move, she was so very tired, and she was comfortable lying like this.

    “Do you wanna talk about it?” Hana gently coaxed. “I’ve never seen you so upset.”

    The doctor nuzzled further into Hana’s neck. “It is not the first time. I just did not have you then.”

    Angela opened her eyes, the silent and thoughtful look on Hana’s face reminded the older woman how the little gamer did not like being reminded just how much younger she was. Angela couldn’t fathom why, then again, Hana had never given a straight answer when asked. The MEKA pilot could be inscrutable when she wanted to be.

    Her little bunny’s bright smile quickly returned, right as a throb of pain coursed through Angela’s body. She couldn’t help but groan a little, which made Hana lift her arms off of the medic.

    “Oh, I didn’t hurt you did I?”

    “No, no,” Angela tried to reassure her. “I just need some more painkiller.” Angela steeled herself mentally, then pushed herself off of the little Korean, rolling over to sit back up on the edge of the bed. She checked the bandage affixed to the side of her head, making sure it was still in its proper place.

    “Whoa, whoa!” Hana jumped out of the bed, before Angela could move to stand up. “Just stay there alright? I’ll get it for you.” Angela watched the gamer pad her way to their bathroom. She itched under the brace protecting her arm while she waited. Which of course made it itch under the brace on her recently broken leg as well.

    Hana quickly returned with a glass of water and a small bottle containing Angela’s painkillers. She gave Angela the bottle and stood in front of her holding the glass until the doctor managed to remove the cap and shake out a couple of small white tablets. Angela popped them into her mouth, then took a quick sip from the proffered water, gulping down the pills smoothly. The blonde set the glass and pill bottle on her bedside table while Hana climbed back up onto the bed.

    “Thank you, Hana.” Angela was truly grateful to her girlfriend.

    Hana plopped herself down cross legged on her side of the bed. “So are you gonna tell me what’s bothering you, or am I gonna have to pester you to death?” The little smirk on her face told Angela just how empty that threat was.

    Nonetheless, Angela’s expression darkened. She turned away from Hana, still sitting on the edge of the bed. “I was thinking about… the little boy. He died because I failed.”

    “You know it’s not your fault, angel.” Angela peeked over her shoulder at her little bunny; she hadn’t moved. She was right, Angela knew. She did not kill that child, it was the result of random chance. Logically, she had done everything she could have. Logical thought did not always affect how one felt, however.

    “I know,” was all the medic could think to reply.

    She felt Hana crawl her way over. Hana grabbed her uninjured hand with her own, twining their fingers together. The brunette said, “But that doesn’t change how much it hurts, does it? You care so much for everyone you meet, even for people you don’t know, that it hurts you anytime someone gets hurt, or dies.”

    Angela smiled wanly. Hana could read her so easily, as though she had a gateway to her mind that told the Korean everything the medic was thinking and feeling. Again Angela felt an incredible surge of affection for her little gamer.

    “How well you know me.”

    The brunette grinned. “I am the best, remember.” Her expression sombered just a little when she added, “You’ve been through alot lately. Maybe you should think about doing something for yourself once in a while?”

    The doctor let her gaze unfocus, thinking about Hana’s words. Do something for herself? What did she want? All she knew was that she was tired, the kind of exhaustion that doesn’t go away with a good night’s sleep. She felt like her spirit itself had grown somewhat weary of the world.

    Hana yawned gracelessly, reminding Angela that it was probably still the middle of the night. A quick glance at the digital clock confirmed her suspicions, it wasn’t even yet four o’clock. “Come, liebe, let’s go back to sleep.”

    “Mmmkay,” the younger girl responded, scooching back over to her side of the bed. Angela carefully settled herself back into the bed, letting Hana untangle the sheets from the mess they’d created earlier and spread them out over the two lovers. Angela lied on her side facing her darling Hana, who snuggled in as close as she dared, careful not to cause Angela any more pain. Angela wrapped her arm around Hana’s waist, settling her cheek on top of Hana’s head.

    After a few minutes, Angela spoke. “Thank you, liebling.”

    “For what?”

    “Everything.”

 

* * *

 

_1047 Hours_

 

    Angela stepped into Winston’s laboratory, well, limped was more like it. The brace on her leg made walking more cumbersome than usual, much to Angela’s irritation. It didn’t help that she refused to use the crutch that had been provided by her own medical staff. Her pride simply wouldn’t allow that; she much prefered to stubbornly limp around. She smoothed the wrinkles in her usual turtleneck, settling her hands on her hips as she peered around the lab. Bits of disassembled tech lay scattered about the room, on tables, or heaped in piles on the floor.

    She found her target on the upper level of his lab, sitting in front of his computer terminal. Winston looked up in surprise. “Angela!” He got up from his seat, hastily grabbing a nearby stool for the obviously struggling doctor. Angela sat down on it with a huff, grateful for the seat. The stairs hadn’t exactly been fun to traverse.

    “Thank you, Winston,” the doctor said breathlessly.

    “Of course, doctor.” Winston seemed remarkably confused, not unusual, Angela did not generally intrude on his privacy. “What brings you here?”

    “Well...” Angela began, not quite sure how to best word what she wanted to convey. “As you know, I am not going to be mission ready for quite some time.” It was common knowledge around the base by now that she’d had quite a close brush with death, and it would take some weeks for her to completely recover from her physical injuries.

    “Don’t worry about that, doctor.” Winston sat himself down in front of Angela after grabbing himself a bunch of bananas that sat on table nearby. He offered one to her, but the blonde woman politely declined. “No one expects you to immediately jump back into duty.”

    “Winston, that’s not what I mean. I’m not worried about what is going to happen around while while I am out of action.” The doctor picked at the fabric of her sweatpants, feeling a bit uncomfortable. “On the contrary, for the first time, I believe I need to… take a break.” That definitely got Winston’s attention, Angela was widely known as a workaholic.

    “Are you saying you want to take a vacation?” Winston asked, completely forgetting about the half peeled banana in his hand.

    “Yes.” Angela was sure, she needed to take a break from the chaos, to heal both physically and spiritually.

    The two scientists heard the door to the lab slide open. “Winston?” a familiar gruff voice asked. “Where are you?”

    “Up here, Jack,” Winston called down. Angela watched as her former commander marched his way up the stairs.

    “Winston, we got a prob… what are you doing here, Angela? You can rarely be found outside your own lab.” Morrison seemed more amused than anything as he walked up to stand with his old comrades. Angela felt mildly irritated at the intrusion, she wanted to conclude her business here quickly.

    Winston beat her to the punch, however. “The doctor here was just telling me she wants to take a vacation.”

    “What?” Jack seemed to completely lose his sense of humor rather quickly. “That’s ridiculous, not at a time like this.”

    “And why not?” Angela irritably hissed.

    “Several reasons! One, you’re the head of our medical facilities around here,” Jack grumped, obviously annoyed. “Two, you’re in no condition to defend yourself if you leave the base, and three, what if you’re needed around here?”

    Winston seemed uncomfortable, this has quickly escalated into something resembling the arguments that had back during the days of the original Overwatch. “Come on now, Jack, there’s no need to go off on Angela like that.”

    Angela stood quickly enough that her stool tipped over, clattering on the ground. She winced at the pain in her body, but it wasn’t enough to overcome her rising temper. “Enough. Jack, I don’t expect you to understand. But I am not a soldier, and don’t take orders from you any longer.”

    76 opened his mouth, probably to start in on her again, but Winston again spoke up first. “She’s right, Morrison. I can’t deny how valuable she is to us, but we have no right to keep her here against her will. Angela,” he turned to speak directly to her. “As far as I’m concerned you’re free to come and go as you please.”

    “Thank you, Winston.” Angela stiffly replied.

    Morrison stalked off, muttering under his breath. Angela didn’t bother to watch him go, annoyed as she was at his irritating habit of opposing everything she wanted to do.

    “Don’t be too mad at him, he’s just concerned about everyone’s well being.” Winston reached out to pick up the stool for Angela to sit on again, which she gladly did.

    “I know, he is not the only one.” Angela settled herself back down onto her stool, neatly folding her hands on her knees, her expression thoughtful. “But I have to take care of myself, too.”

    “Have you made plans yet? And am I to assume Hana will be going with you?” Winston inquired.

    “Would that be a problem?”

    “No. We’re not a military organization, like the previous Overwatch. Everyone here is free to come and go as they please, we’ll make do until you return. Plus, I was going to suggest that someone go with you as a bodyguard, so two birds with one stone.” Angela felt an overwhelming sense of relief at Winston’s words, she had worried she would find much more resistance. She still felt a little guilty at selfishly taking time off, but a lot of thought had convinced her it was the right decision.

    “Well, I was thinking about returning home for some time, a couple of weeks at least. It has been several years since I have been there.” Which was true, after a couple of years spent in the Middle East after the fall of the original Overwatch, she had immediately come here to Gibraltar once Winston had initiated the Recall.

    “That’s a good idea,” Winston said thoughtfully. “I hope you find a little peace back in your home. Would you like to have Lena fly you there?”

    “Yes, that would be wonderful, thank you.” Angela slowly stood from her stool, careful not to knock it over this time. “I should go tell Hana the news.”

    Winston followed her example and stood as well. “This wasn’t her idea? You surprise me, doctor.”

    “Sort of. She suggested that I do something for myself, and I would like to surprise her with it. I owe her something for everything she’s done for me lately.” Angela made her way back to the stairs, taking each step carefully.

    Winston quickly caught up to before she’d made it down more than a couple of steps, offering his arm to help steady her. She accepted his help graciously, especially when she nearly lost her footing halfway down. That would have hurt, had it not been for Winston’s assistance. She didn’t let go until they made it all the way to the lab’s exit. Perhaps she should’ve used the damned crutch after all.

    The door slid open to allow them out into the corridor. Angela let go of Winston’s arm. “Thank you for everything, Winston. We’ll be back soon.”

    “Take your time, Angela,” Winston smiled warmly. “Out of everyone here, you above all else deserve some time off. You do more for us than anyone else.” He pinched the bridge of his nose, pushing his glasses back into place. “I’ll have to find Jack later, see what he wanted to talk about. Have a safe trip, doctor, wherever it is you decide to go.” With that, he turned back into his laboratory.

    Angela turned to go back to her quarters, until she remembered that Hana was likely to at the shooting range, she was training with Jesse on marksmanship. As much respect as McCree had for the young gamer’s skills, he still muttered under his breath at the way she sprayed her blaster at the enemy at times.

    She made slow progress through the base, her injuries, though healing, made for slow going. Fortunately, it seemed most everyone was busy elsewhere, and she ran into virtually nobody as the trudged through the facility. The doctor’s heart felt lighter than it had in days, she was eager to tell her little bunny that she was taking some leave. Hana would be excited, Angela had no doubt.

    The blonde woman passed by the communal kitchen on her way to the shooting range. She could hear several people inside conversing, but didn’t feel like getting drawn into a conversation with anyone, so she hurried past as quickly as she could limp. It turned out to not be a wise choice, Angela’s weak leg buckled and she slipped, falling hard on the metal floor. She couldn’t help yelling out in pain as she clutched her leg. It didn’t seem she’d managed to damage herself further, but damn did it hurt.

    Of course, at that moment, Fareeha rounded a corner down the hall. She was reading a report on her Raptora suit’s maintenance, but when her eyes found Angela lying on the ground, she quickly ran up and knelt down over the doctor. “Angela, are you okay?”

    “I’m fine,” Angela replied curtly. She push herself up onto her knees, brushing off her clothes.

    “You shouldn’t be walking around by yourself like this, you’re still hurt.” The concern in Fareeha’s voice was apparent, but that only served to annoy the doctor further. She had no interest in the Egyptian woman’s attention.

    “Are you a doctor now, Captain?” Angela snarked.

    “No, but…”

    “Then do not presume to tell me what I should be doing.” Her irritation was plain to the dark haired woman; Fareeha backed off slightly. With some difficulty, the doctor stood on her own, refusing any help from the former Helix Securities officer.

    Amari straightened up herself, her demeanor apologetic. “I’m sorry, Angela, I didn’t mean…”

    “Enough,” Angela cut her off. Jesse had told her about the incident in the mess hall between Fareeha and Hana, and she was not terribly forgiving to anyone who would provoke her girlfriend. Especially Fareeha. “Your assistance is not required, and your apologies are not welcome.” The doctor brushed past the stunned soldier, intent on leaving before the conversation could go any farther. She wasn’t that lucky, however, Fareeha caught up with her before she had gone more than a few shaky steps.

    “Angela, hold on,” Fareeha said, stopping directly in the medic’s path. “We need to talk.”

    Angela glared up into Fareeha’s eyes. She could see what seemed like remorse in the captain’s expression, but it did nothing to lessen her own anger. “No, you need to talk. I have nothing to say.”

    “Then just listen. I’m sorry for what happened the other day. I was worried, and I said things I shouldn’t have.” Fareeha paused, shifting uncomfortably on her feet. “I was, unprofessional.”

    “Why bother telling me? I’m not the one you provoked into a fight.” Angela’s irritation was quickly turning to anger.

    “Hana won’t speak to me. She wouldn’t even allow me to visit you in the infirmary after you were released from surgery.” The soldier crossed her arms, an annoyed look on her face.

    Angela raised one eyebrow curiously. “Why do you dislike her so? One would think you would at least have some respect for someone who stood up to defend her country and her people with her own life?”

    “She is an arrogant brat who doesn’t understand the meaning of the word respect!” Angela had obviously hit a nerve, but she had no intention of letting up.

    “She has done nothing to deserve such contempt. Hana has repeatedly risked her life to defend her people!” The doctor pressed on, “She has earned the respect of everyone here, and has repeatedly put herself at risk to protect all of us here, despite the fact that several people here had nothing but doubts about her the moment she arrived. She’s selfless, loyal, and more caring than anyone I have ever met!”  
    Fareeha took a half step back, shrinking away with every word of Angela’s tirade. A look of what resembled guilt passed through her expression for a brief moment, then quickly faded to a more forlorn look that Angela was unaccustomed to seeing on the usually strong willed woman.

    “She doesn’t deserve you…” the Egyptian muttered.

    Enough was enough. Angela took a moment to shove her temper back down, brushing some of her hair behind her ear. “I’m sorry for how you must feel. But you are wrong about Hana. She deserves everything I can give her.”

    Fareeha dropped her gaze, and after a moment of silence, Angela decided it was time to move on. She took a few steps around the soldier, taking care to not stumble again. Making her way down the corridor, she did not see the way Fareeha watched her, her eyes full of sadness and longing. But the soldier made no attempt to come after her.

    Angela made her way across the facility with no further incident. Arriving outside the shooting range door, she could hear the sounds of both Jesse’s customary revolver, as well as her little bunny’s blaster. The door slid open, allowing her to step outside, the sunlight warm on her face. She spotted both Hana and McCree over at the firing line, various robotic test targets scattered in various states of damage all over the test range.

    Hana didn’t notice Angela’s arrival, her focus entirely on the simulated task in front of her. McCree was a little more observant, he grinned slightly when he caught sight of Angela sitting herself down on a nearby bench. Angela was exhausted, the walk around the facility had taken most of her energy. She waved at Jesse to not let her interrupt their training.

    Jesse returned his attention to his trainee, watching her finish off the last few target robots almost as quickly as they appeared in the target field. Angela watched as Hana expertly dropped out the depleted energy clip and inserted a new one to finish off the last target. Her skill had increased considerably since she had started training with McCree not long after her arrival.

    The young Korean grinned, hand raised in a victory pose. She’d managed to beat her previous time by several seconds.

    “Not bad there, kiddo,” McCree drawled, taking a draw on his lit cigarette.

    “C’mon, that’s gotta be a record or something!” Hana protested.

    “‘Fraid not. Morrison holds the speed record for the target course,” Jesse grinned.

    Hana’s shoulders slumped, “That’s not fair! He’s got his stupid visor, he doesn’t even have to try to aim!”

    The doctor raised a hand to her mouth, trying to stop herself from laughing, but she couldn’t contain her giggling. Hana whirled around at the sound, her hair whipping over one shoulder. The smile the appeared on the little gamer’s face warmed Angela’s heart, quickly restoring her good mood.

    “Hey, Angie!” Hana waved enthusiastically. She tried to set her blaster down on the empty table next to the shooting line, but Jesse put a hand on her shoulder.

    “Hold on there, we’re not done here yet,” the cowboy said, his own grin turning slightly mischievous. “You’ve still got one more task to complete.”

    Hana looked at him quizzically, then placed a hand on her hip, her overconfident attitude rising back to the top. “Whatever surprise you’ve got for me, I can handle it.”

    “Good, I like your attitude.” Jesse stepped over to the range’s simulation terminal. “Here we go, I designed this test personally.”

    Hana resumed her position on the firing line, inserting a fresh energy cell into her blaster. “Bring it on!”

    The cowboy didn’t initiate the program immediately. Angela smiled, she knew what was to come. She herself had gone through this particular training course when Jesse had taught her how to handle her weapon.

    “Not with yer little toy there,” McCree drawled. “This course I made specifically to train myself. You got to make every shot count.” He drew his own weapon with a flourish, holding it out for the young woman to take.

    Hana grinned even wider. “I’ve always wanted a chance to shoot your ridiculous revolver.” She holstered her blaster on her hip, and accepted the weapon from Jesse’s hand. She held it out in front of her, taking a preliminary glance down its sights. “Gonna give me anything to reload with?”

    “If yer good, you won’t need any.” The American took a step back, ready to initiate the test.

    Hana focused up, indicating her readiness. Angela watched Jesse hit the start button on the console. This particular test had precisely six targets, but each would move extremely quickly and in an erratic fashion. Hana would only have a few moments for each target before the opportunity would be missed.

    The first robot popped out of a hatch and was immediately struck down by a bullet from Hana’s borrowed weapon. It was obvious, even to Angela watching from several meters behind her, that Hana was surprised by the much more violent recoil of Jesse’s heavy revolver, especially compared to the much more easily handled pink blaster she was used to.

    The pilot recovered quickly, putting down the second, and third targets as quickly as the first. She hissed in annoyance when the fourth target stopped in it’s route right as she fired, missing it by mere millimeters. Another shot eliminated the target. Her final round smacked into the fifth target.

    Jesse smirked, no one had ever completed his personal test on the first try. But he didn’t account for Hana’s quick thinking. After firing the last round from the now empty revolver, she instantly dropped it, drawing her pink blaster. The last target was rendered inoperable by a single shot from the pilot’s personal weapon.

    After the course was cleared, Hana bent down to retrieve Jesse’s weapon and offered it back to him. Angela couldn’t have been more proud. No one had ever come so close to a perfect score on this ridiculously difficult test.

    Jesse grinned wider than ever. “If you can do that, how come you spray shots all over the place most of the time?”

    Hana shrugged. “Can’t always count on bad guys to go down with one shot.”

    McCree laughed, taking his weapon from Hana’s outstretched hand. “Still, nice shootin’, Hana. Gotta be the best shot I’ve seen in a long time.” The cowboy expertly flipped open the cylinder, extracting the empty cases with one deft motion while his other hand pushed fresh rounds into the chambers with a speed loader he produced from a pouch on his belt. He then flipped the cylinder shut and holstered the weapon with his usual western flourish.

    “Thanks, cowboy!” Hana smoothed out the wrinkles in her training uniform, then stretched out her arms while Jesse turned off the training bot production.

    “We’re all done, doc,” McCree called over his shoulder as he walked past Angela’s bench, swaggering his way back inside the facility.

    Hana stood in front of Angela, smiling sweetly. “What’re you doing up and about, hon?”

    The doctor smiled up at her little bunny. “I wanted to come see you.”

    Hana sat down next to the blonde, obviously pleased. Angela continued, “I was just in Winston’s lab.”

    “Yeah?” Hana looked genuinely curious.

    “I told him that I wanted to take some leave,” the doctor explained. “I want… need to take some time off. To heal, and to reestablish a sense of... normalcy, I guess.”

    “I see.” Hana looked up into the sky. “Where were you thinking of going?”

    “Home, to Zurich.” Angela answered. “I have not been home in many years, it is about time I returned. Unless you have some other suggestion?”  
    “Wait, I’m going too?”

    “Of course,” Angela smiled warmly at her girlfriend. “I couldn’t go anywhere without my little bunny, now could I?”

    Hana squealed in delight, throwing her arms around her dear doctor. Angela winced at the stab of pain in her ribs, but didn’t complain. It was worth a little pain to see Hana happy. She hugged Hana back as tightly as her damaged body would allow.

    “Oh I can’t wait to see where you come from!” Hana said excitedly, pulling back from the embrace. “Where will we stay while we’re there?”

    “I have a house, I bought it years ago, when I was made head of one of the hospitals in the city. We can stay there.”

    “We’re gonna have so much fun, you’ll have to show me everything around the city, once you’ve healed.” Hana went on and on about all the things she wanted to do with Angela while they would be together in the city.

    “You will love it, liebe. The city is beautiful, and the nearby mountains are breathtaking.” Angela was happy, herself already quite excited about the idea of spending quality time alone with her little lover.

    Hana jumped up, completely unable to contain her girlish excitement. “C’mon, Angie! We should get packing!”

    “There’s no hurry, Lena probably won’t be able to fly us there until tomorrow,” Angela couldn’t stop smiling at Hana’s enthusiasm. With effort, she stood up herself. Without being asked, Hana took hold of her uninjured arm, looping her own arm around, her hand resting inside the doctor’s elbow. Angela was grateful for the support, she leaned a decent amount of her weight on her girlfriend as they slowly made their way back to the armory so Hana could deposit her sidearm back to its place in her locker.

    “Can I bring my computer with us?” Hana asked as she took Angela’s arm again, resuming course back to their shared quarters.

    “Of course, you can set it up in my office. We’ll just have to clean off the desk to make room,” Angela assured her. Her little bunny would be driven mad if she didn’t at least have access to her vast gaming library, though Angela doubted she would actually spend too much time on her gaming machine.

    Hana fell silent as they walked along the long corridors of the Gibraltar facility. Angela enjoyed the peaceful silence between them, doing her best to forget the troubles that plagued her and simply enjoy Hana’s company.

    When they finally reached their quarters, Hana helped Angela sit down on their small couch. Angela was quite tired from her trek around the base, and it showed.

    Hana piped up, “Looks like you might’ve overdone it this morning, huh?”

    Angela couldn’t deny it, her exhaustion was plain. She slumped further into the couch, trying to catch her breath. Hana sat down beside her, leaning her head onto Angela’s shoulder.

    “I’m glad you’re taking some time off though,” the gamer said. “You deserve it.”

    “That’s what Winston said,” Angela said, a touch breathlessly. She really had overexerted herself.

    “Well, he’s right,” Hana declared. She sat up, looking right into Angela’s eyes. “But I am happy you’re doing this for yourself. Plus,” she winked slyly, “it means I get some time off too.”

    Angela giggled, then groaned, holding her ribs. “Oh, don’t make me laugh, liebe.”

    Hana laughed too. “Sorry, angel. Want me to make some lunch?”

    The doctor was getting hungry. “Please, that would be lovely.”

    Hana got off the couch, but leaned down to give Angela a quick kiss before heading for their little mini kitchen. Angela watched her the whole time she cooked, a content smile on her face. She was thoroughly tired, in many ways, but, with Hana at her side, she would heal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took so long to get this out, this chapter took several rewrites before I was happy enough to send it to my sister for editing. But maybe the little extra length will make up for it? Thank you for reading, and many thanks again to my sister Rei for proofreading this late at night and correcting my terrible grammar.


	5. Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hana and Angela arrive at the doctor’s house in Switzerland, and receive some unexpected guests.

_Tuesday, September 27, 2078_

_1130 Hours_

_Zürich, Switzerland_

 

    For much of her life, Hana had been a loner. As a child, she had few friends, most of whom faded away as time passed and circumstance forced people down different paths. She spent most of her time with her father, whom she adored. He was the one who had first introduced her to the wonderful world of gaming, using his seemingly ancient consoles from a different era to capture her imagination, propelling her into the endless realm of pixelated fantasy.

    As she grew older, going through school as a teenager, becoming a professional Starcraft player, even when she entered military service as part of MEKA, Hana had always felt somewhat isolated from those around her. No matter where she went, the energetic young woman always felt as though something was missing. At the end of every day, when she put aside the somewhat exaggerated persona of D. Va, when she turned off the stream, left her mech in the hangar, and was left alone with only herself for company, she couldn’t help but feel as though she still hadn’t found where she belonged.

    The cramped house she had shared as part of a professional gaming team remained a wonderful memory to the fun loving girl. She had experienced so many things there, establishing herself as the preeminent streamer and Starcraft competitor, soundly defeating her every opponent until she had claimed her multiple world championship victories. At night, she would lie sleepless in her cramped little room, wondering why sleep eluded her.

    As part of MEKA, little time had been left for contemplation, between the rigorous training all the pilots underwent and the various mechanical tests Hana took part in since she leveraged her position as a sort of figurehead to squirm her way into just about anything that was remotely interesting. At the MEKA headquarters, Hana found herself more and more isolated, nearly everyone treated her as either a celebrity, or as a tool to be used against the rising Omnic threat. Not that she minded much, she was rather proud of her accomplishments in the defense of her country and its people.

    It wasn’t until she convinced the higher ups in the chain of command that releasing her to Overwatch after Winston had offered her a position in the newly reformed organization, along with technical and material support in the form of some mech units and schematics, that Hana felt like she belonged somewhere. There, at that base near Gibraltar, Hana finally found somewhere where she fit in, where was wasn’t set apart from other because of her abilities or quirks. Very quickly, she’d settled into life at the base, easily handling all the training and tests either Morrison or Winston asked her to do. She still found time to occasionally stream for her fans, whether it be a game she wanted to play, or a simulated battle.

    Life at Gibraltar had not been perfect, however. Not everyone appreciated her usually cocky attitude, and sometimes Hana had felt more alone there than at any other time of her life. It was also difficult to get some quality alone time with the wonderful woman she’d fallen in love with, especially since the demands on the doctor’s time were usually so much greater than most anyone else around the base.

    Now, she found herself standing outside a simple two story house, it’s old fashioned construction somehow both simple and elegant. A small, whitewashed stone path led from the driveway to the large wooden front door. She slowly strode up the path, her head tilted back to get a good look at the exterior. She loved the light grey bricks that made up the walls of the house, the large windows on both the ground and second stories that were flanked by now faded blue shutters. Despite all the time that had passed since Angela had last lived here, she had apparently taken some measures to ensure it was taken care of in her absence; the small yard out front was well maintained, as was the garden that lay between the stone path and the house.

    “Hana? Can you give me a hand, please?” Angela called out from the passenger seat of the rented vehicle Hana had just parked in the drive. They had had a little trouble getting the renting agent to accept her Korean passport and driver’s license, until he recognized her as the famous D.Va. The young man had practically bent over backward to get the pair anything they wanted after Hana had autographed the his handheld console.

    Hana’s shoes clicked on the stone path as she returned to the car. Angela held a hand out of her open door, obviously needing assistance in extracting herself from the vehicle. The younger woman took the others hand, helping steady the blonde doctor as she carefully removed herself from the cramped passenger cabin, the small bag she’d kept on her lap held by her other hand.

    After grabbing another larger bag from the trunk, Hana let the doctor slowly lead her back up the path toward the simple oak door, their hands still clasped together. Hana smiled widely, looking up at her angel from beside her. She had a small smile on her lips, and a soft sparkle in her blue eyes that told Hana just how happy the doctor was to finally be able to return home.

    “Happy to be home?,” Hana spoke up, eager to hear something about the world she most wanted to explore, Angela’s home.

    “Mostly happy to be out of that car,” Angela smirked. “Not sure I was going to survive the trip from the airport.”

    “Hey!” Hana faked annoyance. “My driving isn’t that bad!”

    “Of course not, liebling…” Angela said as sarcastically as possible.

    “C’mon! It’s not like I hit anything!” Hana pouted.

    Angela laughed, giving Hana’s hand a loving squeeze. “You’re so cute when you pout.”

    From anyone else, that would have annoyed the gamer, but from Angela, as ever, it didn’t bother her. Not much, anyway.

    “Well, at least we’re here. Nice house by the way,” Hana commented.

    “Thank you, liebe.” The Swiss let go of Hana’s hand as they ascended the couple of steps onto the front porch so she could fish a key from a pocket. Hana waited patiently for Angela to open the door, shivering slightly from the cool mountain breeze that ruffled through her dark hair. She was never great at dealing with the cold, though she’d be willing to bet Angela would laugh if she called Switzerland’s mild autumn weather cold.

    The gamer followed her girlfriend through the entrance into the cozy looking house, her eyes looking everywhere, trying to drink in every little detail. The entryway had a floor of cut grey stone. There was a staircase just to left of the door, leading to the second floor. To the right was a large open room, the walls lined with bookshelves, a small reading table and a pair of cushioned wooden chairs sat near the window facing the front yard, more books neatly stacked on top of the table. Angela set her small bag on the wooden bench that lay under the stairwell, then made her way to the left through another open doorway that led to a dining room that contained a large wooden table covered by a simple white cloth under a small light fixture. A large mirror hung on the far wall, opposite an ornate tapestry depicting a snow covered forest.

    Angela continued through the dining room toward the back of the house with Hana on her heels, to the kitchen. The wooden floors were a touch dusty in their owner’s long absence, nothing that Hana couldn’t clean up pretty quickly. The large kitchen sink had a small window over it, looking out the side of the house. The cabinets were ornately carved wood, someone had spent a great deal of time making these by hand. Hana set her own bag down on the granite countertop near the stove, on the opposite side of the room from the sink.

    The doctor opened the small yellow curtains that covered the window, allowing the midday sunlight to pour through the glass before moving over to the refrigerator to take a glance inside.

    “Prolly gonna need to stock up on groceries, huh?” Hana remarked. Wasn’t likely to be anything in there that hadn’t spoiled in the years since the doctor had last been here.

    Angela made a face, she obviously found something in the fridge that she didn’t like. Hana peaked over her shoulder, several containers inside were obviously molding.

    “Uhhh… shoulda cleaned this out before you left, right?” Hana wasn’t terribly surprised. Angela needed someone to look after her; her darling doctor, as amazing as she was, couldn’t be expected to manage a decent household, not on her own.

    “Probably,” Angela groaned, not looking forward to the unpleasant task of cleaning out the nastiness that was festering in her fridge.

    “Pantry is probably empty too, huh?”

    “I don’t remember. It’s that door there,” Angela said, pointing to a smaller door off to the side of the refrigerator. Hana pulled opened the small door, revealing little more than a small closet filled with shelves. Various empty containers lay scattered about the shelves, though there was what looked like a canister of coffee still in there. Of course, Angela couldn’t live without her coffee. Speaking of that, Hana looked around, trying to find the coffee maker. There had to be one around here, probably put away in a cupboard somewhere.

    “Hana, liebe,” Angela had shut the fridge, and was looking at her. “Why don’t you let me clean up the kitchen a little bit, while you bring in our bags? I’m afraid I won’t be of much use in carrying anything, especially that monstrous computer of yours.”

    “What’re we going to do about groceries?” Hana smirked. “I don’t think we can survive on just your coffee addiction.”

    Angela pouted a little at Hana’s teasing, but couldn’t hold back a happy little smile. “We can either go shopping later this afternoon, or assemble an order online from a local supermarket, and have it delivered later.”

    “Shopping sounds like fun, but I don’t think you’d want to walk around a large market in your condition.” Hana’s mood soured a little. Angela was still recovering from some pretty severe injuries, and though the doctor’s advanced medical technologies helped greatly, Hana was sure Angela was getting annoyed at how difficult it was to walk, or move in general.

    “You’re probably right,” Angela said thoughtfully. “But… we can order whatever you would like to get from the store. I have a full set of cookware around here somewhere, we can make anything we want.”

    Hana hummed in thought, her mind preoccupied with the various ingredients she would need to make Angela’s favorite foods. “How long were we gonna stay here, hon?” Hana wondered aloud.

    “A couple of weeks at least, perhaps longer.”

    “That long, really?” Hana was giddy. To spend so much time alone, just the two of them. With all the turmoil the world was experiencing, their work with Overwatch had eaten up nearly all of their time the past two years.

    “There really hasn’t been a time limit put on it, liebling.” Angela smirked, leaning against the counter.

    Hana skipped over to her angel to give her a gentle hug and plant a kiss on the taller woman’s cheek. The gamer practically hummed with joy, so happy she was at that particular moment.

    She felt Angela pat her head, rifling her fingers through Hana’s brown hair as she scratched at the gamer’s scalp. “I can’t tell you how glad I am to have you here with me, Hana.”

    “You just did, silly.” That got a chuckle from the doctor. “But before we worry about food, can I get a tour of your house?”

    “Of course, liebe.”

    Angela proceeded to show Hana around the house, from the library she had already glimpsed, to the cozy carpeted living room behind it. Hana loved the huge stone fireplace, and the soft cushioned couch set in front of a modest entertainment center with a decently sized television. A large armchair looked well worn; Angela said it had been her father’s. The room was sparingly decorated, other than the rich red paint on the walls and a few pictures of what Hana presumed were the doctor’s parents, as well as a couple from Angela’s time at the medical school here in Zürich.

    A small laundry room off of the kitchen held a washing machine and dryer, plus a small washroom. Behind the kitchen a door outside to a patio, overlooking a small fenced in backyard, mostly unremarkable save for a couple of rather large trees, though Hana had to admit she had no idea what kind of tree they were.

    Angela led Hana upstairs, where a hallway lay lengthwise across the house. To the left at the top of the stairs was the master bedroom, quite possibly the largest bedroom Hana had ever been in, other than a few hotel rooms she had stayed in while she was filming a movie. Despite her somewhat celebrity status, Hana has spent most of her adult years in the tiny quarters normally afforded to a soldier. A large queen sized bed sat near the front of the house, near the large window covered by dark blue curtains. There was still room for a small loveseat in front of another television, plus a large dresser of a dark wood with an attached mirror. The attached bathroom held a large bathtub, which Hana was sure she would get some good use out of.

    Down the hallway Hana found the guest bedroom, an unremarkable room with a plain bed and a small chest of drawers. Next to the bedroom was another full bath. On the other side of the hall, overlooking the backyard, Hana found Angela’s office. This is where she had obviously spent most of her time. Hana spent several minutes looking around the shelves that lined the off white walls, full of medical textbooks, most of which she couldn’t read. A large desk against one wall was mostly empty, occupied only by a few scribbled notes on loose pieces of paper and a small notebook. The large leather chair rolled around easily on the wood paneled floor, Hana plopped herself into it, imagining Angela having sat in this same chair years ago.

    “You can set up your computer here if you like,” Angela said, leaning her shoulder against the doorway.

    “Thanks, Angie, but won’t you need this space?” Hana asked.

    “If I were going to do any research, maybe. But all my research materials are elsewhere, my own computer was left back in Gibraltar.” Angela limped slightly over to the window, looking out toward the mountains. “You’re free to use anything in this house as you please, liebe.”

    The gamer couldn’t resist saying, “Does that include you?”

    Angela hid a giggle behind one hand, her face turning slightly red. “Maybe… once I have recovered somewhat.” Both women shared a laugh, then fell silent. Angela returned to gazing out of the window with a pleasant expression on her face.

    Hana got up from her seat to join the doctor in looking out the window. “What’cha thinking about, Angie?”

    The beautiful blonde shook her head slightly, as though she had been lost somewhere else for a moment. She looked down at Hana, smiling warmly. “I was just thinking, I could not remember the last time I did not have any demands on my time.”

    Hana smiled right back, but couldn’t resist teasing her angel just a little more. “Well, don’t get too used to it. I’m sure I’ll find something even a gimp like you can do.”

    Angela wrinkled her nose at Hana in mock irritation, though her sly grin gave her away. “Come along, liebe. Lets gets this place cleaned up while I still have energy left.”

    “You got it, babe.”

    Hana hurried back down the stairs and out the front door. It took her several trips to carry in the various bags, not to mention her gaming pc and all the peripherals and other equipment she needed for streaming. When she finally grabbed the last box of gear she needed to take up to Angela’s office, she made sure to lock the rental car, pocketing the keys in her endorsement branded pink hoodie. She took one last look up at the house before starting back up the path to head inside. Here, at this house, Hana felt something she hadn’t in a long time. She’d never been here before, but it felt like home.

 

* * *

 

_1715 Hours_

 

    It didn’t take the pair all that long to get the house cleaned up enough to live in. Hana was quite pleased at their progress, though she had to repeatedly tell Angela to stop and rest on the couch downstairs. But now, the kitchen was clean, and Hana had just finished putting the last of the ordered groceries away, making sure they had gotten everything they ordered. A buzzer from the washing machine went off; Angela had taken the sheets off the bed and thrown them in along with some bath towels for good measure.

    “Don’t get up, Angie, I got it!” Hana yelled across the house to her angel, who had better still be resting in front of the TV. When she didn’t get an answer, she poked her head into the living room only to find Angela snoozing in the large armchair. She looked so cute with her blonde hair covering her eyes, Hana could only shake her head and smile. At least the doctor wasn’t overworking herself, for once.

She tiptoed away toward the laundry room. Just as the gamer was in the middle of moving the sheets from the washer to the dryer, the doorbell rang.

    “Who could that be?” She heard Angela mutter sleepily from the living room. Hana hurriedly threw the bath towels into the dryer with the white bedsheets, curious to see who would come calling at a normally empty house so late in the afternoon.

    When Hana finally made it to the entryway, she was met with the sight of Angela standing barefoot in an open doorway, holding a small plastic container, and conversing in German with an elderly couple. The man stood slightly taller than Angela, his average build easily dwarfing the diminutive woman at his side. She was even smaller than the gamer herself. Both sported white hair, even the man’s beard was completely white. Hana didn’t understand a word of what was being said, though the kindly smile on the wrinkled old woman put Hana’s heart at ease.

    After a moment, the white haired old man scratched at his thick beard and seemed to ask Angela a question. Angela looked over her shoulder right at Hana and smiled, motioning her to come forward.

    “Sorry, liebe, I didn’t know you were standing there behind me.” Angela waved the gamer forward to stand next to her. Hana came up to stand next to her girlfriend, unsure of what to say.

    Fortunately for her, Angela continued in English. “This is my girlfriend, Hana Song. Hana, may I introduce Nora and Leo Hafner.”

    Hana bowed slightly to the elderly couple. “Hello!” She greeted them brightly.

    “Hello, Miss Hana,” Nora returned. Her short white hair bounced slightly when she chuckled quietly. “I would have made more cookies had I known you’d brought home a girlfriend, Angela!”

    “And such a pretty one, too!” Leo chimed in, joining his wife in laughter.

    Hana felt her face flush, she felt mildly embarrassed. Apparently Angela felt the same way, if her reddening cheeks were any indication.

    The Hafners could see they’ve embarrassed the young couple. Nora spoke up, “So what brings the illustrious doctor Ziegler back home?”

    Angela paused, probably reaching for a suitable answer that didn’t give away her condition, so Hana interjected. “I insisted Angie take me on a vacation, she’s been neglecting me for months now, slaving away in her lab.”

    Angela shot her a small glare, which only served to make the gamer grin back.

    “Come now, Angela,” Leo said. “Don’t tell me you’re going to make the same mistake again!”

    Nora smacked her husband on the shoulder, an annoyed look on her face. “Enough of that, you old fool.”

    Hana looked at Angela, confused. What were they talking about? The doctor’s face wasn’t giving anything away. Instead Angela spoke to the elderly couple, “Why don’t you come inside for some tea?”

    “That would be lovely, danke,” Mrs. Hafner responded.

    Angela turned to carefully walk toward the kitchen, doing a good job of concealing her injuries, though the bandage on the side of her head would surely be questioned. Hana stepped back to allow the Hafners through the door. She ushered them into chairs at the large dining table after shutting the front door. She sat down opposite them while Angela clanked around in the kitchen making tea to serve her guests.

    “So you two must have known Angie for a long time.” Hana wanted to know more about whatever it was Leo had alluded to earlier, but now was not the time for that.

    “Oh yes,” Nora answered. “Our house is across the street. We brought your doctor some cookies when she first moved in. She seemed so sweet, a pretty young woman living on her own. Of course, Leo here was quite taken with her.”

    Mr. Hafner cleared his throat, crossing his arms in front of his chest. “Well, you can hardly blame me, she did help us out a great deal.”

    Nora grinned up at her husband. “Yes, of course, dear. You see, Hana, old Leo here managed to fall off our roof while he was cleaning the gutters. Angela not only called the ambulance for him, she had him taken directly to the hospital where she worked so she could fix him up herself.”

    “I’ll never forget the talking to I got afterward,” Leo said grumpily.

    “From Angela, or your wife?” Hana asked, not sure who he had meant.

    “Both.”

    Both women at the table broke out in laughter. Poor Leo, Hana knew all too well just what it was like to have Angela scold you for getting yourself hurt.

    “Hana!” Angela called from the kitchen. “Can you come here a moment? I can’t seem to find the tea.”

    “Coming!” the gamer responded, getting up from her seat. “Be right back!” she said to their guests before slipping into the kitchen, where she found Angela peering around inside the pantry.

    “So,” she whispered to her doctor, “why’d you tell em we were together? I thought we were keeping things on the down low?”

    Angela whispered back, “I wasn’t going to lie to them. Besides, I’ve known them for years, they aren’t going to spread it around.”

    “Alright,” Hana sighed. She was secretly pleased Angela was so comfortable with their relationship that she didn’t give any thought to calling the gamer her girlfriend in front of others, but she wasn’t going to let it show, not when other things tugged at her curiosity. “Is there anything I shouldn’t tell them?”

    The doctor looked thoughtful for a moment, but the whistling from the kettle on the stove took both of their attention. Hana opened a cabinet where she had placed the various teas she had ordered while Angela retrieved the teapot she had already warmed up. Hana placed the appropriate number of teabags into the teapot, loving the feathers that adorned the sides. Angela poured in the water, setting the lid onto the teapot.

    “I wouldn’t tell them about Overwatch’s recent activities, of course,” Angela whispered. “Or that I am recovering from a near fatal incident. Other than that, it’s up to you.”

    “Why not tell them you’re hurt?” Seemed like an odd thing to hide to Hana.

    Angela’s faced showed mild annoyance. “I don’t need them treating me like an invalid.”

    “I… haven’t been doing that, have I?” Hana’s posture shrunk a little, she was genuinely worried she’d upset her girlfriend.

    “No, liebe.” Angela ruffled Hana’s hair with one hand. “Well, maybe a little. But I know it’s only because you care.”

    Hana relaxed, she’d tensed up when she thought Angela might have been annoyed with her. Grinning like a happy idiot, the tiny Korean took it upon herself to remove and dispose of the tea bags after enough time had passed. Angela produced a tray to carry it all on from somewhere in the back of a cupboard, then grabbed some milk from the refrigerator, along with some spoons for the guests to use to stir.

    “Let me carry all this, alright?” Hana said. “You go sit your cute ass down.”

    Angela put her hands up in surrender. “Alright, alright.”

    The gamer followed her girlfriend back into the dining room, where she set the tray with the tea in the middle of the table. She poured the tea into all four cups, allowing the guests to help themselves to the milk first. After sitting back down next to her darling doctor, she poured a little milk into her own tea, and idly stirred the liquid.

    “It’s been so long since you’ve been home, doctor. How have you been?” Nora asked after taking a small sip on her tea.

    Angela leaned back in her chair, setting her own cup down in front of her. “It’s been a very hard few years. Not everything has turned out the way I wanted it to, nor have I achieved all I wanted. But, I can’t complain, not really. I’ve been very lucky that I can still do what I want to do with my life.”

    The elderly couple seemed to accept that answer, vague as it was. Leo wasn’t a fool though, if the sharp look in his blue eyes meant anything. He probably guessed Angela didn’t want to share too many of the details, but he didn’t press her for more.

    Mrs Hafner wasn’t finished, however. “What happened to your head there, Angela?”

    The doctor scratched at the bandage, she’d almost forgotten it was there. “Well, uhh…”

    Hana was quicker at making up a story. “That was my fault. I surprised her while she was working, and she slipped and whacked her head on a table.” The gamer put an on her best guilt ridden expression, even squeezing her hands in between her knees to make herself smaller.

    “But… but not to worry, I am fine.” Angela rubbed Hana’s back in gratitude. It was a good cover.

    Leo coughed into one hand. “Well, as long as you’re alright, doctor.”

    “How do you like Switzerland, Hana?” Nora asked, drawing Hana out of her faked remorse.

    “I dunno yet,” Hana scratched the back of her head. “I’ve only really seen this house, and the airport when we got here. I’ve never been to Switzerland before.”

    “Well, Angela here had better show you around before too long, we’re supposed to be getting some nasty weather in a few days.” Leo chimed in.

    “Not to worry, we plan on staying for several weeks.” Angela said.

    “Really?” Nora leaned forward a little. “You haven’t been visited for that long since before Overwatch shut down.”

    “Yes, it has been a long time. But it feels good to be home.”

    The four spent a few minutes chatting idly about a few things, mostly the goings on around the neighborhood, or on some silly anecdote from Angela’s past. Nora gave the little gamer a good list of the popular tourist attractions in the city, as well as a few places only the locals know about. Hana thoroughly enjoyed their company, it was like having a doting aunt and uncle she never knew existed. And it was clear how much they cared about Angela, which put them high on Hana’s list of people she liked.

    “Tell us about your little girlfriend, doctor,” Leo said after having been mostly silent. His grin told the gamer how he enjoyed teasing the young couple.

    Angela glanced down at Hana seated next to her, humming thoughtfully. “Well, I met Hana about two years ago.” Hana kept quiet, curious to see exactly what Angela was going to say. “She’s from South Korea, she’s rather famous actually. Many people love watching her stream video games, plus she’s been in a couple of movies. To be honest, I’m still not really sure how I ended up with her.”

    That made Hana smile, and she caught the couple across the table grinning as well. “You mean I pestered you until you finally gave in to my charms, right?”

    “Of course, liebe,” the doctor uttered. Hana bumped her shoulder lightly against Angela’s, smiling up at her. “But I would not change a thing.”

    “You two seem happy together,” Nora cut in. “I’m glad for you both.” The wrinkled old woman smiled broadly, her husband grinned as well. The young couple blushed a little, embarrassed by it all.

    Leo looked at his watch, then stood. “We have to get going, doctor. Our son is supposed to be coming over for dinner soon.”

    “Oh yes, I had almost forgotten,” Nora said, following her husband’s example and standing up.

    Hana whipped out her phone to open a recently installed app as Angela led their guests to the front door, and held it open for them. Anna stopped in the doorway to pat Angela’s cheek. “You let us know if you need anything, alright? Welcome home, Angela.”

    Leo followed his wife out the door with a silent smile. Angela gently shut the door behind them, making sure it was locked before coming back sit to next to Hana.

    “Well, that was unexpected.” Hana remarked.

    Angela heaved a sigh before responding. “I should have known they would notice our arrival.”

    “They’re really nice, aren’t they?”

    “Yes, they are.” Angela said fondly.

    Hana hesitated for a moment. A question had niggled at the back of her thoughts for a while, and she wasn’t sure if she should ask it. She decided to ask anyway, otherwise it would bother her forever. “So what was that about making the same mistake twice?”

    Angela didn’t answer immediately. She didn’t even look at Hana, which worried the gamer a little. Or a lot. They sat in silence for a solid minute before Angela responded. “It was several years ago. I was in the Middle East, using all the technology I had developed in Overwatch to do what I could to help the people there.”

    Hana’s shoulders slumped. She could guess where this was going. Angela continued, still not looking at her. Her voice was quiet, empty of emotion. “I ran into Fareeha. She had been sent on a mission by her commanders in Helix Securities to get my help with rescuing a nearby town that was being terrorized by a local militia. Events unfolded in a way I could not deal with, so after it was done, I left, and returned here for a few days. Fareeha tracked me down, we had an argument right outside my front door. Obviously, the Hafners heard the commotion, and came over after Fareeha left. I told them she had just broken up with me because I worked too much. It wasn’t the truth, but they did not deserve to be burdened with it.”

    Angela balled up her fists on her knees, telling this story was hard on her. Hana took one of Angela’s hands, stroking it gently. “I see. I’m sorry, Angela.”

    The doctor sighed, tired from the events of the day. “It’s alright Hana. I should have told you before now, I just… do not like talking about that.”

    “So… were you two ever… together?” Hana probed. She felt a huge spike of jealousy at the possibility that Fareeha had ever held any of Angela’s affection.

    Again Angela hesitated, but then looked Hana in the eyes, her own blue eyes open and honest. “No. There might have been something back then, but I learned very quickly that it was not possible. I made it clear to her that day, on my porch, that it could never be, though I fear she will never accept it.”

    Hana wanted to know why exactly, but the painful way Angela talked about it warned her not to press too far. At least the doctor made it clear she held no one else in her heart but Hana, even if she hadn’t exactly gone into detail about what had happened between her and Fareeha. The details didn’t matter, Hana could see in the doctor’s eyes that she meant every word.

    Hana squeezed the doctor’s hand as she brought it up to press a kiss to Angela’s palm. “Thank you,” the gamer murmured.

    “For what?”

    “For telling me. I know you don’t like to talk about things like that.” Hana really did appreciate it when Angela would let her in like that. It made her feel special. Well, more special. She planted another kiss on the back of Angela’s knuckles. She could see the effect her affections had on the doctor, she clearly enjoyed Hana’s attention. And Hana had every intention of indulging her dear doctor in every way, it was the least she could do.

    The doctor smiled softly, she relaxed into her chair, but didn’t take her hand back, letting Hana smother it with kisses. “We should do something for dinner, liebe, before it gets too late.”

    “Already handled, babe.” Hana smirked. Angela looked uncharacteristically confused, until Hana revealed the open app on her phone. “I ordered pizza while you let your friends out!”

    “Hana!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy crap, I am sorry this took so long. I hope you enjoy reading this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it, however. Please, feel free to leave to leave a comment or a suggestion for me, I promise I'll read em! Many thanks as always to my sister Rei for helping me edit and proofread everything you've read thusfar.


	6. Questions and Answers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Angela and Hana spend time out in the city together, with a special little visit to someone important, followed by a walk along the lake.

_Wednesday, October 12, 2078_

_2030 Hours_

_Zürich, Switzerland_

 

    Angela closed her eyes, leaned back in her large leather chair, and stretched her back, wincing slightly at the small pain in her side. She frowned somewhat, it was still rather annoying how much her healing wounds restricted her movement, but it was markedly better than she had felt the past several days. Objectively, her recovery was coming along nicely, despite the blonde’s impatience. Her bruising was mostly gone, along with most of the soreness. As long as she didn’t strain herself too much, there wasn’t much pain to speak of. It helped that she wasn’t rattling around in the house all alone; Hana had been outdoing herself in caring for just about everything Angela could think of.

    The doctor smiled, adjusted the pair of reading glasses perched on her nose, and picked up the book she had been perusing. After a couple of weeks of restlessness, her workaholic nature reasserted itself a little; she was poking around her various medical texts, refreshing herself on a few things. Several more books lay on the table next to her seat, plus her electronic tablet that was currently playing some soothing classical music through a pair of earbuds. Angela held a particular fondness for Mozart.

    Something touched her ponytail, nearly causing her to jump out of her skin, to say nothing of what could only be described as a squeak that emanated from the blonde. Angela looked up to find the smiling upside-down face of her darling Hana had appeared from over the back of the chair.

    Popping out her earbuds, Angela heaved a sigh, “Liebe, you know I do not like it when you sneak up on me like that.”

    Slender fingers gently scratched at the doctor’s scalp, making sure to stay well away from the healing laceration on the side of her head, now mostly hidden by Angela’s thick blonde hair. Her eyes fluttered shut at the touch, it felt wonderful.

    “I can’t help it! Especially when you squeak like that, it’s too cute!” Angela could hear the smile in the tiny gamer’s voice.

    “Aren’t you supposed to be streaming right now?” Angela asked, her face slightly red. She didn’t really want to  examine just how pathetic her reaction was any further.

    Hana’s fingers stopped for a moment, then resumed their massaging of Angela’s scalp. “Taking a short break, just came down to get a drink. Thought I’d stop and bother you for a few minutes.”

    Angela took off her glasses, placing them on the table along with the large textbook she had been reading. Hana set down her glass of water as well as she plopped herself down on the nearby couch. Angela was thankful it wasn’t more of that blasted caffeinated soft drink the gamer so prefered. Hana still had a small, satisfied smile on her face, like she was content with everything in the world. Maybe she was, Angela herself felt deeply content with the state of her life. Sure, she had some regrets, and still felt her work was yet undone, but here, with Hana, everything felt right.

    “What’re you grinning at, Angie?”

    The older woman caught herself staring at Hana, lost in her thoughts, carried away by the sound of rain pattering on the window. “Nothing in particular, liebe.”

    “Uh huh,” the gamer said, cocking her head to one side, her face a picture of disbelief. “Sure…”

    Angela rolled her eyes fondly, she wasn’t going to get away without revealing a little about what was on her mind. “I was just thinking about how pleasant life has been this last week or so.”

    “It has been pretty great, huh?” Hana leaned onto the arm of the couch, one hand propping up her chin.

    “It is all thanks to you, liebling.” Angela said, her voice full of warmth. She was truly grateful to her little lover. “I do not know if I can ever thank you enough.”

    Hana smiled so brightly, it lit up Angela’s world even further. Until the gamer’s grin turned mischievous, which caused Angela blood to run slightly hotter. “Well, if you wanted to thank me, you could always take your clothes off.”

    “Hana!”

    “What?” Hana asked so innocently there was little doubt as to precisely what was on her mind. Intimacy had been impossible considering Angela’s condition, but she was feeling significantly better since they had first arrived.

    But playing coy was Angela’s game. “Is there something wrong with my clothes, liebling?”

    “Other than that they’re still on you?” Hana retorted, her eyes skimming up and down Angela’s body. “Well, at least you’re not wearing the same black turtleneck you always wear.”

    Angela looked down at her shirt, a plain white buttoned shirt, nothing fancy. “Are you saying you don’t like the way I dress?”

    Hana looked thoughtful, “Nah, I just don’t understand how you don’t get bored with the same look all the time.”

    It had never really crossed Angela’s mind, her appearance wasn’t high on her priority list. Function and ability generally took precedence for just about everything in her life, her only real indulgence had been the styling her Valkyrie suits. Hana had brought so much change into the doctor’s life, she figured it would be alright for a little more, especially if it made the gamer smile.

    “Well why don’t we go shopping tomorrow? The rain is supposed to move on tonight, and it is supposed to be relatively warm throughout the day, you can play dress up with me all afternoon.”

    “You sure you’re up to that? I don’t want you to overdo it”

    Angela nodded. “I will be fine, I feel much stronger than I did just a few days ago. Still have a ways to go with my recovery, but I believe I can handle a day shopping with you.”

    Hana squealed in pure delight, until Angela added, “But I get to pick something for you too.” The gamer scowled so fiercely the doctor couldn’t help but laugh, though she tried to hide it behind one hand.

    “We also have to pay someone a visit while we are in town, might as well do that while we are out.” Angela’s smile faded a little, her thoughts a little forlorn.

    Now Hana looked confused. “A visit? Just who exactly?”

    Angela decided not to let her mood darken, instead opting to tease her little bunny some more. “Oh, you will see.”

    “Uhhg, fine, Angie, have it your way.” Hana pouted. “At least I’ll get a chance to mix up your wardrobe a little.”

    “Somehow, I think you just can not wait to get me out of my clothes,” Angela grinned.

    Hana’s eyes flashed, gleaming with renewed focus. A sly grin spread across her lips as she said, “You’re right, I can’t.”

    “Hana…” Angela started to protest, but the gamer had already jumped up from the couch, a predatory look in her eyes. Angela watched her stalk right in front of her chair, felt her own pulse quicken in anticipation as the gamer leaned down to capture her lips in a kiss. Angela’s eyes slid shut, her nose filled with Hana’s sent. Just as Angela was about to deepen the kiss, Hana pulled back. The doctor opened her eyes only to find that same mischievous grin that could drive her wild.

    Angela kept still when Hana slowly climbed up onto the chair, pushing back on the chair to force it into a more reclined position, stradling Angela’s lap. The gamer wriggled her way as close as she could without hurting the doctor, who rested her hands on the brunette’s hips. She felt Hana trace lines with her fingers across her cheek, gently brushing her lips. Long strands of the gamers hair fell all around her, smelling faintly of her strawberry shampoo.

    Angela brought one hand up to cup Hana’s cheek, brushing her thumb over where the pink whiskers would usually be. “I really do love you, Hana.”

    “All part of my plan, Angel.” Hana leaned in for another kiss, deep and slow.

    The doctor was a little breathless after the younger woman broke the kiss a minute later. “What plan would that be?”

    Hana whispered in her ear, “Why, the plan where you fall for me so completely that I get to keep you all to myself.”

    Any response Angela could come up with was completely shoved out of her mind when Hana began plastering her neck with soft kisses. Hana knew all her weak spots, knew how the doctor loved the gentle attentions she lavished on her neck, the gentle nibbles on her ear. Angela tried to hold back a moan, but she couldn’t control herself when Hana bit down on the pulse point in her neck.

    “Hana…” the doctor gasped, her body feeling hot, desperate for Hana’s touch.

    The gamer sat up, looking down at the doctor with an especially cocky grin on her face. Angela felt warm fingers trace her jawline, and down her throat, until Hana began undoing the buttons of her shirt.

    Angela lost herself in another passionate kiss, she clutched feebly at Hana’s pink and blue striped sweater. Hana grew hungrier, more insistent. Angela felt the last button of her shirt come undone, and Hana slipped it off her shoulders, just enough to completely expose her chest and collarbones.

    The older woman pulled at the younger’s sweater, wiggling her hips underneath the brunette, yearning for more, desperate to be closer to her lover. Her skin felt hot everywhere Hana touched, and the gamer seemed to know just how much power she held over the doctor. Hana took full advantage of her squirming lover’s condition to tease her relentlessly with soft kisses, light grazing touches, and gentle fondles.

    “Ha… Hana…” Angela said breathlessly as Hana was kissing her way down her neck to one collarbone.

    “Yes, my love?” Hana whispered as confident hands slipped behind Angela’s back, pulling her up so the gamer could expertly unhook the doctor’s bra, sliding the straps off her shoulders, and pulled it down to expose her generous chest.

    Angela slipped her hands under Hana’s sweater, dragging nails across her back. Hana squirmed from the touch, but didn’t stop her from trailing kisses down to Angela’s exposed bosom.

    “There is… ah!” Angela moaned as lips found their way to a hardening nipple. “There’s something you are forgetting…”

    Hana snatched Angela’s arms from her back, pinning the doctor’s wrists against the back of the chair, on either side of her head. Angela tried to get free, but the gamer was far stronger than she looked.

    “I’m not forgetting anything, my angel,” the young woman whispered into Angela’s ear, nibbling lightly at her earlobe.

    “What about… your stream…” the doctor breathed, desperately wishing that Hana would choose to abandon her viewers, at least for a little while.

    Hana pecked her on the lips again, looking deep into the doctor’s eyes. Angela shuddered at the fire she saw in those brown orbs, knew what that look meant. There was only one possible outcome though, Hana would never abandon her thousands of viewers in the middle of a show without so much as an excuse.

    Then she saw that damn smirk cross her little lover’s lips. “I might have lied when I said it was a break. The stream ended twenty minutes ago.”

    Angela’s mouth gaped in disbelief. It didn’t last long, Hana wasn’t the most patient person. And she had Angela pinned beneath her, completely helpless. The gamer would soon have her squirming in breathless pleasure, begging for more.

    _Well,_ Angela thought, _at least I am where I want to be._

 

* * *

 

_Thursday, October 13, 2078_

_1117 Hours_

 

    The sun was warm on Hana’s face, it was a most welcome change from all the rain they’d been having for the last several days. She looked up to gaze at the clouds just as a fluffy white one slid in front of the sun. She was strolling through the shopping district, hand in hand with her glowing angel, each already carrying a couple of shopping bags full of the various things that had attracted their attention. Angela was indulging her, Hana knew, so she was determined to have as much fun with her girlfriend as she could.

    The couple had spent hours poking around in various shops, looking at all sorts of clothes and other things, even an electronic store Hana really wanted to visit, but chose now to stop and treat themselves to lunch in a small hole in the wall type sandwich shop Angela used to eat at when she attended the nearby university. They sat in a quiet corner next to the window at the front of the shop after their orders were ready.

    “I can see why you like this place,” Hana remarked before taking another bite of her amazingly delicious grilled ham and Swiss cheese sandwich.

    “What do you mean?” Angela asked, delicately wiping her mouth with her napkin.

    Hana gestured around the fairly vacant eating establishment, besides the two of them, there was only the two employees cleaning up behind the counter, another young couple on the other side of the shop, and one middle aged man who was too invested in whatever he was reading in the newspaper to even take a bite of his own food.

    “It’s quiet here, just the kind of place I can image you getting some coffee and something to eat while slaving away at whatever schoolwork you were working on.” Hana could imagine her beloved doctor elbow deep in research notes right here at this table, whatever food she had ordered completely forgotten as she ran across something that had stolen her attention.

    Angela giggled, probably recalling something eerily similar to Hana’s imaginings. “You’re right, I did quite like to come here a couple times a week after classes. Back then, the young man running the register liked to sometimes give me an extra cookie when I would come in, I think he rather liked me.”

    “What?” Hana mumbled around a mouthful of sandwich, sitting up completely straight, not noticing the bit of bread stuck to the corner of her mouth.

    Her reaction only served to make the Swiss woman laugh harder, she sure knew just how to tease the gamer to no end. Hana pouted, crossing her arms in front of her, slinking back into her seat, annoyed that Angela managed to get the better of her, again.

    The doctor only smiled that beautiful smile of hers, and reached across the table with her napkin to wipe the bread crumb from the corner of Hana’s mouth. Hana felt a smile tugging at her own lips, she wasn’t really mad, and couldn’t hold the pretense for long.

    After wolfing down the last bite of that amazing sandwich, Hana felt compelled to tease her love just a little bit in retaliation. “Well at least I managed to sneak in that leather skirt I liked when you weren’t looking.”

    Angela’s face flushed a little bit, recalling precisely the tight black leather miniskirt Hana insisted she try on at one of the earlier shops. “Hana! Come on, that skirt was much too short, there’s no way I could wear that in public!”

    “Oh, of course you can, you’ve totally got the legs for it,” Hana smirked. “With a pair of nice heels, and the right top, everyone would be staring, boy and girl alike.”

    “Come on, Hana, please…” Angela begged. Hana found her modesty amusing, though she was determined to get the older woman to recognize just how sexy she was, even if she’d never flaunt it.

    “Oh no, Angie, you’re not going to get away forever with your boring shirts and unflattering pants,” Hana needled, pointing at the Swiss woman’s typical black turtleneck and brown pants. “We’re gonna turn you into the envy of every supermodel, make the whole world acknowledge that you are the most beautiful woman to have ever lived!”

    Angela couldn’t respond, Hana cackled as the medic hid her blushing face behind her hands. Maybe the gamer had taken it a little far, but she felt smug satisfaction at the blush decorating the doctor’s cheeks as she returned to nibbling at her food, deliberately avoiding looking at the younger woman.

    Hana scampered back up to the counter to order another sandwich, turkey and cheese this time, the first wasn’t quite enough to satisfy her enormous appetite. The man behind the counter quietly charged her credit card while the other one set about making her order. They were polite as could be, all smiles and thank you’s. When she returned to her seat across from Angela, the doctor had already finished her own food.

    “Done already? Your appetite’s definitely made a comeback.” Hana sniggered. Angela rarely would eat as much as Hana did, even when the doctor was starving.

    “Yes, I am feeling much better, thank… is that roast turkey?”

    “Uh huh!” Hana held her sandwich out for Angela to take a bite. She’d spend much of the last two years, not just the past couple of weeks, trying to make sure Angela ate well, and was more than happy to share her own food with her.

    The doctor took a small bite, clearly delighting in the flavor. Hana took a bite as well, moaning in satisfaction. It was a damn good sandwich.

    After a moment, Hana noticed a particular expression on Angela’s face, a faraway look that told the gamer her girlfriend was a million miles away. She’d been doing that more often lately than usual, though it didn’t seem like anything was bothering the Swiss woman.

    “Angie? What’re you thinking about.”

    The doctor blinked to refocus her eyes, gazing right into Hana’s eyes. She hesitated for a moment, but finally said, “I was just thinking, how nice it would be to forget about Overwatch, and stay here, with you.”

    “Really? You would want that?” Hana was shocked, though not for the reasons the doctor would likely guess.

    Angela looked at her seriously. “Yes, I would. I know it’s impossible, I could never leave my work unfinished, but that doesn’t mean I don’t regret not being able to have a normal life, without the spectre of danger on every mission.”

    “I get that. You’re not the only one.”

    They ate the rest of their food in silence, Hana always holding out the sandwich for the doctor to take another bite. The food seemed to do the trick, drawing Angela out of her somewhat melancholy mood. Smiling brightly, Hana disposed of their waste, and collected their shopping bags so they could continue on with their shopping trip.

    Just a few shops down, Angela paused at the window, Hana had to turn around and walk back a few steps to see what she what caught the taller woman’s attention. It was an absolutely adorable dark blue dress, with its rounded neckline, flared skirt, and large bow detail behind the waist.

    “Interested in the dress there, hon?” Hana elbowed her angel in the side, gently of course.

    “Well, you do keep telling me I look good in blue.”

    “You look good in everything, babe. But, yeah, blue is totes your color.” Hana practically shoved her doctor inside the shop, intent finding that exact dress in Angela’s size.

 

* * *

 

    “Yes… yes, she is here,” spoke the tall woman on a cell phone from her seat in the cafe across the street. Her accent was luxuriously thick, like her words were dripping with honey. She spoke with a cold indifference, as though she were bored.

    “They seem to be… clothes shopping. Yes. That Song girl is here with her, foolish child. Understood, I will continue surveillance. Perhaps we can advance our schedule, provided we find an appropriate… opportunity.”

    Her piercing yellow eyes missed nothing as she watched that damn girl push the doctor into yet another clothing shop. Pulling a few bills from her blouse to leave under her teacup, she vacated the cafe, and, despite her pale blue skin, easily disappeared into the crowd of people milling about the shopping district.

 

* * *

 

_1442 Hours_

 

    Hana sat quietly as Angela drove them out of the city. She didn’t know exactly where she was, or where they were going. The doctor would only say they were going to pay someone a long overdue visit. So, Hana said nothing, merely watched as they drove through the busy streets, admiring the architecture of the old city, sharply contrasting with the newer buildings in the more modern sections. The gamer loved the older parts, they was so charmingly quaint, the beautiful stone buildings seemingly ancient, yet long lasting and elegant in their construction.

    Angela drove them out of the busy thoroughfares, to a road near the large lake with which the city shares its name. The waters were calm today, and Hana zoned out a little bit as she looked out over the water. It was so peaceful here, you could almost forget the horrors that were occurring elsewhere in the world. She mused over Angela’s words earlier, whether it was right for the two of them to enjoy a peaceful vacation when she could be fighting to protect innocent people. Hana felt a little guilty, but it would do no good for either of them to get burned out, and she was here to help Angela with her recovery anyway.

    She stared out over the lake, imagining a life here with Angela. She could stream all day long, make any meal the doctor wanted. She’d have to deal with laundry more often, the automatic laundry system back at the base in Gibraltar had spoiled her a little. But Angela would help with that, surely. The Korean slipped a hand into her pocket, when she was sure Angela wasn’t looking, to make sure the ring was still safely nestled away. Hana carried it with her most every day now, hoping to find the right moment to ask the question, but it had as yet eluded her. She almost asked at that sandwich place earlier, but that didn’t feel quite right. Patience, she reminded herself. The right moment would come.

    Their rented hover car came to a stop in a small lot near a large stone wall. Hana stepped out, she started to hurry to the other side to help Angela out; she worried she’d tired the poor doctor out with running around the city all day, but Angela was already on her feet. Hana traced her girlfriend’s gaze to the large metal archway that led inside the wall next to a decently sized building. There were words inscribed on the door to the building, but Hana had no idea what they meant, she couldn’t read German.

    Angela left her purse inside the vehicle alongside the myriad of bags they had purchased throughout the day, keeping only the keys which she tucked into her pocket. She reached out her hand to Hana, a soft look on her face. Hana took it, letting Angela lead her to, whatever this place was.

    The answer was apparent as soon as she got a look inside the archway. The stone monuments in neat little rows, scattered shrubs and a few trees surrounded by short cut green grass, small little gravel pathways that led to various sections of the place where people only came to bury their loved ones, or to visit them long after they’re gone.

    It was so quiet in the little cemetery, Hana could hear every little crunch of gravel beneath their feet. She stepped a little closer to Angela to hang on to her arm with both hands. The sweet smell of late blooming flowers filled her nostrils as the couple navigated the little paths, Angela knew the way. Hana’s mood had quickly sombered, she could guess who they were going to see. Soon enough Angela stopped at a nondescript little headstone. Hana didn’t understand the words written into the stone, but the names made it obvious. Laura Ziegler. Patrick Ziegler.

    Angela spoke for the first time since they’d gotten out of the car. “Mother, Father. This is Hana Song.”

    Hana bowed deeply toward to headstone, though she couldn’t find any words to say. She wasn’t prepared for this encounter, though she cursed herself for not considering the possibility. Angela saved her from her own awkwardness though, after she’d straightened up.

    “I wanted to bring you to meet my parents sooner, but there was never a good break in our schedules to take the trip together.”

    “You don’t get to come here very often do you?” Hana asked, not really sure where this was going to go.

    “No, I have not been here in many years.” Angela looked profoundly sad, staring down at her parents’ resting place. Hana squeezed the doctor’s hand lovingly, deciding to simply stand here with her however long she wanted.

    A breeze from the nearby lake filtered through the trees that lined along the stone wall, tickling Hana’s neck, gently buffeting her hair. She leaned into Angela’s side, thinking about how the older woman had lost her parents as a child. Angela never really volunteered any more than what was commonly known, only saying that her parents were the reason she decided to pursue a career in medicine.

    The two women stood silently with their hands clasped together, one surrounded by a flood of memories, the other offering nothing but unconditional support. A few other people walked past them, completely unnoticed by either girl, each absorbed in their own thoughts, and each other. There was something, reverent about this place. After a time, Hana tore her gaze from the headstone to look up at Angela’s face, only to see a trail of tears falling down the blonde’s cheeks.

    “Angie?” Hana quietly called, gently turning Angela’s face toward her, wiping away the tears with her thumb.

    “I’m sorry, Hana,” Angela sniffed, dragging a hand across her nose. “I was just thinking, about how much I do not know about them. How much I missed because they were taken from me. I went to medical school because of their influence in my life, and because of their deaths. But would they approve of the path I have chosen? Would they be proud of me?” Another tear leaked out of the corner of those liquid blue eyes.

    Hana stood on her tiptoes to kiss away the tears on her angel’s face. She squeezed the doctor’s hand, trying to reassure the blonde through touch.

    “I don’t know what your parents would say, I’ll never get the chance to know them personally…” Hana struggled to find the right words, sure she wasn’t really helping. What do you say to someone who's been hurting longer than you've been alive? “But… but if they’re anything like you, they’d see all the good you’ve done, all the people you’ve helped, the lives you’ve saved.”

    Angela was looking right into the gamer’s eyes, those beautiful blue depths desperately seeking comfort, reassurance. Hana’s heart broke at the sight of Angela’s anguish. “Of course they’d be proud of you. Anyone would. I know I am.”

    The doctor blinked, forcing another tear to fall. She sniffed again, managing to regain control of herself. Hana wished she had a tissue or something for the doctor to use to wipe her face, but she’d left her purse in the car. Damn the tiny, nearly useless pockets in her jeans. Angela wiped her face with the sleeve of her free arm, her other hand still tightly clasped with Hana’s.

    “Reinhardt used to tell me that no one we love is ever truly gone, so long as those left behind remember, and honor them,” Angela said, her voice a touch breathy.

    “I like to think that too.”

    Angela brought up Hana’s hand to kiss her knuckles. “Once again, thank you, liebe.”

    Hana smiled, glad to have been a comfort for her loved one. “For what?”

    “Seems you are the only thing keeping me together lately.” Angela said soberly.

    Hana shook her head. “No, at best I just remind you of your own strength. And everyone needs someone, sometimes. I know I need you, pretty much all the time.”

    There we go, Hana thought. She finally got a smile out of the doctor. Angela took a deep breath, and seemed a little refreshed.

    “Shall we go for a walk along the lake? I’d like to tell you a little about my parents, if that’s okay?” Angela asked.

    “Sure!” Hana followed the doctor after she bid farewell to her parents’ resting place, after a few steps, let go of Angela’s hand to rush back to the headstone. Bowing again deeply, she wished them well, wherever they might be, and thanked them for bringing Angela into the world.

 

* * *

 

_1656 Hours_

 

    Angela strode along a small public path by the Lake Zürich, her mind free from the doubts that had troubled her a good part of the day. Visiting her parents’ graves had been cleansing for her, she felt a great deal of the weight she had been carrying for far too long had been lifted from her shoulders. Plus, her parents deserved to meet her significant other, no matter the circumstance. Hana happily strolled alongside, humming some silly tune to herself, probably one of those K-pop songs she was always listening to.

    They spent a good deal of time walking by the lake, well over an hour, talking about her deceased parents. Angela had told Hana how they were both doctors, her mother an oncologist, and her father was a most talented neurosurgeon. Angela had recalled how her mother would sing to her at night, how her father had built her a large playhouse in their backyard. And how she spent days cooped up in that playhouse, with every book she had pilfered from her parents’ bookshelves, lost in the pages. Her mother taught her to read at an early age, and the young Angela had devoured every scrap of writing she could get her hands on.

    The doctor had also told of how her mother was terrible at cooking, recounting a vivid memory of one particular attempt at making a simple casserole resulted in poisoning all three of them. Her father had teased his wife endlessly over it. Angela had spoken at length about how warm her parents were, how they doted on their little girl. Hana had smiled the whole time, genuinely happy to hear everything Angela said.

    “Your parents sound like wonderful people.” Hana said, attempting to re-engage their earlier conversation.

    “They were. I’m grateful to them for everything they’ve given me. I would not be who I am without them.” Angela hoped they knew just how hard she tried to honor their memory.

    “You know,” Hana said, changing the subject. “At some point, you’re gonna have to meet my parents.”

    For some reason, Angela felt she’d rather be in a shootout with Talon than face the tiny gamer’s parents. “Yes… I suppose I will…”

    Hana jumped in front of her, stopping the doctor in her tracks. A curious grin adorned the smaller girl’s face. “Don’t tell me you’re afraid of meeting my parents?”

    Angela tried to shrug her off. “Don’t be ridiculous, Hana, I’m sure your parents are lovely people.”

    “Yeah yeah, don’t try to hide it from me. You worried they’ll think you’re not right for me or something?”

    The Swiss stammered, “Well, I… I… uhh… ummm…”

    Hana slammed her fists down on her hips, narrowing her eyes at the doctor. “What’s the problem, doc? This better not be about how much younger than you I am, again.”

    Angela burst out, “Come on, Hana, can’t you imagine how awkward it will be? They are only eight or ten years older than I. Somehow I find it hard to imagine that meeting could be anything but awkward.”

    Hana gave her the evil eye for a moment, but Angela could see the gears in her head working. Eventually, the little gamer’s shoulders slumped, defeated. She couldn’t deny the logic of Angela’s argument. The doctor knew Hana hated it when that happened, and she would pay for it later.

    The pair walked along until they came to a bench. Angela gingerly set herself down on it, the day had been taxing on her recovering stamina. Hana plopped herself down next to her, staring out onto the lake. The Korean had a strange look on her face, like there was an internal struggle going on. Angela didn’t know what to make of it, Hana rarely took much time to make a decision.

    “Hana?” Angela could help to ask. “Is there something on your mind?”

    “Huh?” Hana responded dumbly.

    The doctor didn’t want to press too hard, especially since Hana had been so supportive all week. So, instead of her initial impulse to try to pry into Hana’s thoughts, she simply scooted closer and leaned into her side a little, to let the tiny girl know Angela was there.

    “Don’t worry, liebe. I am sure I will get along just fine with your parents. After all, they are your family, and therefore important to me as well.” Angela meant every word. She’d deal with whatever problems arose, for Hana’s sake.

    Hana spoke without looking at the doctor, “I haven’t told them much about you.”   

    Angela was surprised, but she didn’t pull away. “Why?”

    The gamer shook her head, “I don’t know. I don’t talk to them often, except to tell them I’m okay. They worry, especially Dad. His nerdy little girl ran off to fight for her country, and now I’m halfway around the world. I want to tell them about you, about how I fell in love with the most wonderful person I’ve ever met.”

    Hana stood up, and paced about in front of the blonde. “So why don’t you tell them? Are you embarrassed of me?” Angela asked, totally lost as to her little bunny’s train of thought.

    “No! No, of course not!” Hana gestured animatedly, trying with her whole being to reassure the Swiss woman. “All they really know is that I’ve found someone, and that you’re a doctor, my mother really liked that, and that you’re older than I am, though I wasn’t really clear about it, but…” Hana was babbling, Angela knew she did that when she was nervous. But why on Earth would she be nervous?

    “I don’t know why I don’t tell them. Maybe it’s because I’m just content with the way things are.” Hana sat back down, a little dejected.

    Angela could sympathize, it would be a lie to say she had never let things lie because it was the easier route, especially when it meant dealing with people, even people she considered friends. She pulled the little gamer closer by her waist, enjoying the pleasant breeze from the lake, for a time.

    “At least you have family who love you to confide in,” Angela said quietly, breaking the silence. “I have no siblings, no aunts or uncles, and my grandparents have all passed.” In a sense, the doctor was alone in the world, the last of her blood.

    She felt Hana shift her weight, the gamer had turned to face her fully. She had a strange look on her face, like the tiny brunette had finally found something she had been missing for a long time.

    Retrieving something from her pocket, Hana gave her a look of sheer earnestness and determination. “Angie, you’re not alone.”

    “I know…”

    “Genji once told me something,” Hana interrupted. “He said that everyone has two families. The one you’re born with, and the one you choose. I think he was talking about how he considers the people from Overwatch his family, like you, and Zenyatta, and Torby, and all the others.”

    Angela took a breath to ask a question, but stopped once Hana held out her hand, revealing a thin gold band, with a large diamond set in an beautifully intricate pair of golden wings. Angela’s breath caught, it was as though this ring had been made especially for her. She pressed a hand to her heart, it felt as though it were trying to beat out of her chest.

    “Hana?” the doctor breathed, transferring her gaze up to Hana’s face. The gamer wore a small smile, not the usual cocky one, or the evil, mischievous smirk, but the pure, beautiful smile she only showed to the doctor.

    “I’ve wanted to ask you for a while now. Ever since I met you, you’ve been on my mind, and before I knew it, you were all I could think about. Even my games couldn’t always distract me,” Hana giggled.

    Angela’s eyes grew watery as the tiny gamer went on. “I want to spend every day with you, wake up every morning to see your face. Make your coffee when you’re in a rush, tease you when we play a silly game. I can’t imagine my life any other way anymore. I want us to spend our lives together, as family. Will you marry me?”

    The Swiss was not generally an impulsive woman. She rarely rushed to a decision, relying on her intellect to make the smart decision. But as happy tears streamed down her face, she already knew her answer, even before Hana finished asking. Angela had made this choice long ago.

    “Yes!”

    Hana took her left hand, slipping the golden band on to her ring finger. Angela stared at it through her tears, almost thinking it was too good to be true. The look on Hana’s face told her otherwise, the pure love reflected through her big brown eyes telling her this particular dream, wasn’t a dream at all.

   

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My sincerest apologies for the really long wait for this chapter. Between getting sick, rebuilding my computer, driving out of town to visit my mother who moved out of state last December (who was also sick >.< ), it has really just been a hectic month. Hopefully the little extra length to this one will help make up for it and tide y'all over while I work furiously on the next one. Thanks again to my sister Rei, not only for her excellent editing and proofreading skills, but also for her support and encouragement. And thanks to all of you for reading, your support means more than you know.


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